
V^AJL 



Class l:3k^. 

CDPXBiGHT OEPOSm 




A Treatise 
On the Development and Use of 

MUSCLE 




BY 
THE CHAMPION 

c, A, mm 

"The Strongest 
Man on Earth. 



=; It ALTO SERIES. No. 69. 
I June, 1895. Monthly. Subscription, $8.00. 
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i 



STRENGTH 

ON 

THE DEVELOPMENT AND USE 

OF 

MUSCLE. 



THE GHAMPION, 

Cv^A. SAMPSON, 
The Strongest Man on Earth.' 




CHICAGO AND NEW YORK: 
Rand, McNally & Company, Publishers. 






itl^n«^ ^ana in (S:^0vp0vs ^ano* 



Copyright, 1895, by Rand, McNally & Co. 



THIS BOOK IS DEDICATED 

OF THIS, 

MY ADOPTED COUNTRY, 

In the earnest hope that it may stimulate to even 

greater activity the newly awakened and vigorous 

interest in athletics that so happily 

characterizes the present time. 



CONTENTS 



Chapter I — Introductory. 

PAGE 

Old heresies refuted — Danger of exhaustion — Health 
and exercise — Exercise as a brain rest — Injury by 
muscle stretching — Hard muscles — Slow, but sure 

— Influence of mind on muscle, - - - ii 

Chapter II — Biographical. 

Babyhood — Early travels — School life — Franco-Prus- 
sian war — The boy-soldier wounded— Struck by 
lightning — Discovers the use of ring — Runs away 
and joins a circus — Visits America — Wounded 
whilst rescuing a girl — Lifts a cannon at Detroit — 
Great success in London — Meets Sandow — Unsat- 
isfactory results of contest — Press and personal 
opinions — Breaks harness-lifting record — Breaks 
his own record — Performance at World's Fair, Chi- 
cago — Receives medal as champion of the world — 
Newspaper accounts of feats, - - - - 33 

Chapter III — Preliminary Instructions. 

The " strong-man" born, not made — Genitis essential 

— Other requisites — Measurements — How to use 
strength — Evils of violent, intermittent training, 123 

Chapter IV — Hygiene. 

Method not onerous — Diet — Medicines — Tobacco — 
Alcoholic stimulants — Cold bath — Importance of 
unimpeded pores, - - - - - - 135 

(7) 



8 CONTENTS. 

PAGE 

CiiArrER V — Trakning Without Apparatus. 
Walking— Deep breathing — Chest development — 
Beef tea in place of alcohol, - - - - i49 

Chapter VI — Specific Exercises. 

The use of rings — Benefit of massage — Breaking down 
old tissue — How the rings work — Exercise with- 
out expenditure of nerve force — Rubber bands — 
Pneumatic tire band — Steel ring — Chest band, 159 

Chapter VII — Light Dumb-Bell Exercises. 

Their right weight — When to increase their weight — 
Danger of exhaustion — Importance of ventilation 
— Exercises, ------- 174 

Chapter VIII — Heavy Dumb-Bell Exercises. 

Its weight— Only for use of athletes — Caution against 

using those of too great weight — Exercises, - 199 

Chapter IX — Long Bar Heavy Dumb-Bell Exercises. 
Weight — Length of shaft — Exercises, - - - 212 

Chapter X — The Roman Column. 

Its drawbacks — Only for athletes and the young — 

What it is— How to use it — Substitutes, - - 223 

Chapter XI — Heavy-Weight Harness-Lifting. 

Onlyfdr professionals — Description of collar — Simul- 
taneous use of many muscles — Concentration of 
will — Champion harness-lift — Gold belt, - 234 



PREFACE. 

This treatise is primarily intended for men and 
women who do not aim to be professional athletes, 
but wish to possess well-developed, vigorous, and 
healthy bodies, and learn how to utilize their 
physical powers. At the same time, the method 
advocated is the one that has led to whatever suc- 
cess I have attained in my profession, so that I can 
recommend its adoption by those also who purpose 
following the arduous occupation of "strong-man." 

I shall endeavor to be simple and concise, and 
not burden the reader with irrelevant matter. 
To a limited extent physiological subjects must 
be touched upon to explain clearly the reason- 
ableness of some of the instruction, but long, 
anatomical dissertations, as well as technical 
terms, will be avoided as far as possible. 

My athletic record evidences the soundness of 
my body. It is my ambition that this book may 
demonstrate I am not presumptuous in using as my 
motto the entire maxim, 

MENS SANA IN CORPORE SANO. 



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STRENGTH. 



CHAPTER I. 

INTRODUCTORY. 

Of the books written upon physical devel- 
opment the name is legion. It would be a 
thankless and invidious task to separate the 
worthy from the bad and indifferent, and 
name them ; but it may be broadly stated that 
those works not quite modern are worse than 
useless, and entirely untrustworthy guides. 

It is amusing, in the light of our present 
knowledge, to read some of the books written 
on this subject twenty or twenty-five years ago. 
Preliminary purgings, ascetic abstinence, and 
the swinging of clubs of enormous weights were 
a few of the things considered absolutely neces- 
sary. 

(U) 



12 STRENGTH. 

All such methods are now discarded by intel- 
ligent teachers ; indeed, from what I have read 
in a book lately published, the pendulum seems 
to be swinging somewhat too far in the oppo- 
site direction, and the instructions appear to 
me to be too unexacting. For instance, I find 
that exercises I advise to be performed with 
light dumb-bells are recommended to be gone 
through without any weights whatsoever in 
V the hands. This, I think, incurs a useless 
waste of time, for there is no doubt but that it 
takes longer to reach a certain degree of mus- 
cular development by motions made with the 
empty hands, than if dumb-bells weighing two 
to four pounds were used. I am free to admit, 
however, that it is far preferable to use no 
dumb-bells than to practice with those that 
are too heavy ; and, as I emphasize farther on, 
in the chapter entitled " Light Dumb-Bell 
Exercises," it is better for weak or sickly per- 
sons at first to perform the exercises in this 
manner ; and later, as the muscles acquire tone 
and strength, to begin handling one-pound 
dumb-bells. 



INTRODUCTORY. 15 

Throughout this book I shall constantly 
warn my readers against the uselessness and 
danger of straining the muscles or frame, and 
of the peril that attends exercise carried to the 
point of exhaustion. 

The remnants of old heresies regarding 
training still have some life ; and the false idea 
that the muscles can not be brought to the 
highest state of development without encoun- 
tering these dangers, seems to have as many 
lives as the proverbial cat, and be as hard to kill. 

As I explain in the proper place, those who 
intend to publicly perform feats of strength 
must, to a certain extent, run the risk of injury 
in this manner ; their practice with the heavy 
weights, however, being not so much for the 
purpose of developing muscle as to acquire the 
knack of easily and gracefully handling pon- 
derous apparatus. 

Whilst giving full instruction to this class 
of athlete, my chief aim is to provide every 
one, old and young, male and female, with 
an easily-learned and simple set of rules and 
exercises, whereby the muscles may be brought 



16 STRENGTH. 

into that perfect state of development that 
assures the possessor all the health, strength, 
and beauty nature intended him or her to 
have. Heavy dumb-bell or any other strain- 
ing exercises are quite unnecessary to reach 
this desirable end, and, unless the pupil is 
ambitious to excel in athletic competitions, are 
quite uncalled for. 

The general relationship existing between 
health and exercise is universally admitted ; 
but in this, as in other matters, individuals 
are apt to make exceptions of themselves, and 
fancy they are differently constituted to others, 
and think that although the rule commonly 
applies, it does not do so in their particular 
case. 

It is, of course, a fact that many people 
keep in a fair state of health with but little 
exercise, but it is beyond all question that they 
would be all the more vigorous, robust, and 
clear-headed if they were to muscularly exert 
themselves to a reasonable degree every day. 
In the first place, they would store up a 
reserve of vital force against that evil day 



INTRODUCTORY. 17 

when sickness comes ; and secondly, their 
bodies would be freed of the impurities that 
are cast off by active exercise, and afford a 
less likely resting-place for the germs of dis- 
ease, which thrive and propagate on corrup- 
tion. 

But the benefits of exercise do not all lie in 
future freedom from or mitigation of sickness. 
The gain is immediate also, for when muscles 
are used, the tissue of which they are com- 
posed breaks down faster than if they were 
not exerted, and, as is explained later, the 
excretory organs, especially the pores, are 
stimulated to increased activity, and carry off 
more rapidly and thoroughly effete matter, 
which, when allowed to linger in the body, is 
invariably harmful. 

The muscle, after its broken down tissue 
is excreted, immediately begins to absorb 
material from the blood to build up and 
replace what has been discarded ; the digest- 
ive organs respond at once to this call for 
nutritive blood, by providing more digested 
matter ; and the appetite, in its turn, is corres- 



18 STRENGTH. 

pondingly increased — in fact, a whole chain 
of results follow muscular exercise, every link 
of which is entirely and invariably beneficial 
to both body and mind. 

The bright eye, clear complexion, unclouded 
brain, and ruddy glow of health, that indicate 
a system free of effete material, and bounti- 
fully supplied with healthy blood busy build- 
ing up muscle, is the immediate reward of 
those who intelligently exercise. The muddy 
or pimply skin, the dull eye, inert brain, and 
sallow countenance are the outward signs 
provided by nature to indicate that functional 
torpidity or disorder is progressing within, 
and that exercise is called for to correct the 
derangement. 

A property of muscular exercise, that is not 
as often recognized as it should be, is its power 
to rest the tired brain. As will be more fully 
explained farther on, whenever an organ is 
brought into action a largely increased supply 
of blood is directed there. Inversely, when 
the blood supply of any organ is increased, its 
activity is enhanced, and when the supply is 



INTRODUCTORY. 21 

lessened its activity is reduced. The brain is 
not an exceptional organ in this respect, an 
extra supply of blood being called to the seat 
of thought whenever the mind is actively 
engaged. To thoroughly rest the brain, there- 
fore, the blood should be drawn from it, which 
can only be done to a serviceable extent by 
exercising some other organ and calling the 
blood to that part. 

We have all felt the invigorating influence 
of a smart walk after a period of severe mental 
work, and it will be found that a few minutes 
with the dumb-bells has even a more restful 
influence, for then a larger number of muscles 
are brought into action, and a correspondingly 
greater volume of blood is drawn from the brain. 

It may perhaps appear strange that I do not 
advise the use of even light Indian clubs. I 
will give my reason for not doing so, as it is 
somewhat explanatory of the important and 
often ignored fact that physical strength 
depends upon the power to contract muscle. 
A simple exemplification of this is obtained by 
holding a weight in the right hand, the arm 



22 STRENGTH. 

hanging by the side. With the other hand 
grasp the biceps of the weighted arm and, as 
the elbow is flexed and the weight is lifted 
upward towards the shoulder, the muscle will 
be felt to increase its circumference and shorten 
itself, thus by its contractile power pulling up 
the forearm, to which the lower end of the 
biceps is attached. As all muscular action is of 
this character, it is apparent that contractile 
power constitutes strength, and the intelligent 
instructor keeps this fact ever in view. 

It does not take any great expert knowledge 
to comprehend that the forcible stretching of 
an elastic tissue can not tend to develop its 
contractile power, in fact that the very con- 
trary must result; hence my serious objection 
to the use of Indian clubs, the swinging of 
which severely stretches the muscles and 
slightly, if at all, calls into play their power of 
contraction. 

It is often forgotten, when elasticity of mus- 
cle is spoken of, that what is, or .should be, 
meant is its power of contraction, not its possi- 
bility of extension. I must not, however, be 



INTRODUCTORY. 25 

understood to mean that muscle should be 
so developed that its capacity for stretching 
should be diminished — as occurs when one 
becomes what is termed " muscle-bound," for 
the exercises I suggest are so devised that both 
functions will be promoted. 

A cry has gone up lately that hard muscle 
is a sign of an abnormal and unhealthy con- 
dition, and a book that has attained a large 
circulation within the past few months lays 
particular stress on this point. 

A very little consideration will show the 
absurdity of the theory. 

Under the microscope a muscle is seen to 
consist of a number of fine cords or fibers 
bunched together, much as electric wires are 
sometimes massed into one rope. Each of 
these cords has its separate power of con- 
traction, and it is a simple arithmetical prop- 
osition that the greater the number of these 
cords a muscle contains the greater must be 
its contractile power as a whole ; and as the 
hardness of a muscle simply denotes its density, 
the absurdity of the contention that a soft 



26 STRENGTH. 

muscle (one composed of few fibers) can be 
as strong as a hard muscle (one composed of 
many fibers) is apparent. 

If further refutation of this theory were 
necessary, one has merely to turn to the 
lower animals for the purpose. Is the horse 
less healthy or more subject to disease when 
in training, with every muscle like steel, than 
when he is in a softer condition? His glossy 
skin, power of endurance, keen appetite, and 
frolicsomeness negatives the proposition. 
Animals in their natural state, that keep 
their muscles hard by constant exercise, are 
other cases in point ; for surely they are 
then no more subject to disease than when 
their muscles are softened by loss of exer- 
cise during confinement. 

The book in question that makes this 
absurd assertion, also uses the fact that wild 
animals keep in trained muscular condition 
without the use of apparatus as an argument 
against the use of dumb-bells, etc. 

It is probably true that if man walked on all- 
fours there would be no occasion for any artifi- 



INTRODUCTORY. 27 

cial aid to develop his arms, shoulders, chest, 
and back; but as he is constituted to walk 
upright, and because people under the condi- 
tions of modern life are, in many occupations, 
called upon to but little use these muscles, 
artificial means are rightfully resorted to to 
counteract the ill results of artificial exist- 
ence. In other words, the use of dumb- ■ 
bells, or some such implements, are necessary 
to the even development of the muscular sys- 
tem of those who exert themselves unevenly, 
as is the case with all leading sedentary or 
semi-sedentary lives. 

It will be found that the exercises I direct 
are not arduous or onerous, but that, on the 
contrary, when they have been practiced for 
a few weeks their cessation will be considered 
a deprivation. A quarter of an hour's dumb- 
bell work before breakfast and its repetition 
before going to bed will, in time, be felt to be 
as necessary as a meal, and the missing of it 
be as keenly felt. The appetite for breakfast, 
caused by the early quarter of an hour's exer- 
cise, and-the sound sleep that follows the latter. 



28 STRENGTH. 

gives immediate assurance of the healthful- 
ness of the practice. 

There is no royal road to the acquisition of 
anything really worth having, and my method 
does not pretend to be such ; but I feel con- 
vinced that the system I advise is as short a 
cut, and as pleasant and smooth a path, as can 
be traveled along to attain the objective point, 
which I take to be a vigorous physical 
development of such character that its per- 
manence is assured. I am quite ready to admit 
that by more violent means than I advise, 
muscle can be more quickly developed, but I 
am confident that muscle so formed is not of 
such lasting quality, and that a very short 
cessation from exercise would result in a com- 
plete undoing of the severe work of months. 
" Slow but sure " should be the motto of both 
pupil and teacher in athletics — the fable of 
the tortoise and the hare being used to illus- 
trate it. 

^ I mention hereafter the necessity for con- 
centration of mind and will-power on what- 
ever exercise is being performed. The sub- 




SAMPSON. 



INTRODUCTORY. 31 

ject Opens up a wide field for investigation, 
of special interest and importance to the 
athlete, and without g'oing into any deep con- 
sideration of the subject, it is well not to drop 
it out of mind altogether. 

The human system is an intensely sensitive 
organization, every part of which acts and re- 
acts upon every other part, either directly or 
indirectly, with unerring certainty. One arm 
is damaged — the other aches in sympathy ; the 
brain is injured — the hand or foot is immedi- 
ately paralyzed ; a member is hurt — the brain 
instantaneously takes note of the fact, and pain 
is felt at the point of injury. The relationship 
between mind and body is close and insepar- 
able; so much so that without having any belief 
in the teachings of the apostles of modern "faith 
cure," it does not seem to be an unreasonable 
conviction that concentration of mind upon the 
performance of an exercise aids the develop- 
ment of the muscles brought into play. Let 
this be as it may, it is true, without doubt, that 
from one cause or another it is impossible to 
exert one's strength to the utmost, or to attain 



32 STRENGTH. 

the best results from training, unless the 
mind be intensely concentrated on the work 
in progress. 

Following is a short sketch of my life which 
I include, not because I consider it of any 
special interest, but that it throws more or less 
light on .my methods of training, and what has 
resulted therefrom. 



CHAPTER II. 

BIOGRAPHICAL. 

My name is Sampson, not Samson, as it is 
often written by those who suppose I assumed 
a name to suit my profession. 

I was born in Metz, Lorraine, on the i6th of 
April, 1859, ^^^ lived there during the first 
two years of my life, and, as my mother after- 
ward told me, was a fat and lusty boy. My 
father was a surgeon in the French army. 

When I was two years old my mother's ill 
health made a change of climate necessary for 
her, so, taking me as a companion, she went 
to Italy, and later sailed from there to Aus- 
tralia, where we staid until my seventh year. 
After five years' absence, on the 7th of May, 
1866, we once more turned homeward. The 
steamer "Australia," on which we, took 
passage, broke down in mid-ocean, and it was 
not until after a tedious and perilous voyage of 

3 (33) 



34 STRENGTH. 

eleven weeks that we arrived in London. I 
was so young at the time that I do not remem- 
ber all the dangers we encountered, but my 
mother, who had much improved in health, 
became more than ever an invalid as a result of 
the nervous strain endured while helplessly 
being tossed about at the mercy of the waves. 
She never recovered from the shock, and 
shortly after reaching home, passed away. 
Thus at an early age I was deprived of a 
mother's watchful care. 

On reaching my eighth year my father, 
who, because of his military duties, was seldom 
at home, took me to a school at Friedrichsdorf, 
in Germany. This institution was one of the 
best in Europe, and youths from all parts of 
the world were sent there to be educated. 

Traveling around the world with my mother 
had, however, made a more or less spoiled 
child of me, and learning lessons appeared to 
be dreadful drudgery. I was, at all events, a 
healthy, high-spirited boy, if not a studious one, 
and whenever there was any mischief on hand, 
I was sure to be th.e ring-leader. Before very 




BREAKING CHAIN BY ACTION OF THE BICEPS. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 37 

long my father was notified of my misdoings 
and, as a reformatory measure, removed me to a 
small private school at Heidelberg. Here, also, 
I made but little progress with my studies and 
eventually was taken home, where I staid , until 
the Franco-Prussian War broke out in 1870. 

My father accompanied the army in his 
official capacity, and no sooner had he gone 
than I took advantage of his absence and 
ran away with two other boys of equally 
adventurous disposition and joined the French 
Ambulance Corps at the seat of war. Early in 
the campaign one of my little friends was shot 
through the head by a stray bullet, and killed, 
and soon afterwards my other companion was 
taken ill and sent to a hospital in the rear ; so 
that within a few weeks from leaving home I 
was left alone amongst strangers, to face the 
hardships and turmoil of warfare. 

At the battle of Gravelotte, whilst helping 
officers to supply the wounded with water, I was 
struck in my left side by a bullet, but not very 
severely injured. My father, who had been 
notified of my absence from home, but did not 



38 STRENGTH. 

know of my whereabouts during all these 
adventures, heard of me that day, whilst he 
was on duty near the battlefield. He came to 
my side at once, and finding it impossible to 
send me home to Metz, which was then 
invested by the Germans, had me taken to 
Nancy for more careful nursing than I could 
receive at the front. From that time my 
health began to fail, probably as the result of 
the wound and of the hardships endured dur- 
ing the time I was with the army; and to make 
matters worse, not long after, shortly before 
my fourteenth birthday, whilst sitting in the 
house, I was struck by lightning and com- 
pletely paralyzed. At the expiration of sev- 
enteen days I somewhat regained the power of 
motion, but was left partially paralyzed and 
practically helpless. 

. As my father was well-to-do, every effort 
was made and no expense spared to prolong 
my life and abate my sufferings, but medical 
skill proved of no avail. Numerous physicians 
were consulted, but always with the same 
result ; nothing bettered my condition. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 41 

After being confined to bed for three 
months, nature began to assert itself and I 
became able to sit up for a few hours each day. 
As I began to mend, two strong ropes, with 
steel rings attached, were suspended from 
the ceiling above my bed, extending down 
within reach of my hands, by the aid of which 
I could raise myself to a sitting posture. 

One day, one of these ropes happening to 
break, I playfully unfastened the ring and 
slipped it upon my wrist, and from there 
forced it to the upper part of my arm 
around the biceps, where I worked it up and 
down over the muscles, little thinking that 
this would lead to any amelioration of my 
condition, I made several movements with 
the arm, straining the biceps against the 
ring, and after a time felt a sensation of ease, 
but, in turn, my arm, as well as my whole 
body, was very fatigued. A deep and peace- 
ful sleep followed, from which I awoke feel- 
ing fresher and brighter than I had at any 
time since the lightning stroke. I told none 
of my physicians of my amusement, or the 



42 STRENGTH. 

result, but kept repeating the exercise, and 
as time went on my sufferings gradually 
abated. Daily the lifeless-arm muscles began 
to harden, my whole body gaining strength, 
and five months from the time of being 
stricken I felt myself not only well, but bet- 
ter and stronger than ever before. I did not 
cease my course of practice with the steel 
rings, and upon every opportunity slipped 
one upon my arm and made muscular move- 
ments. To this exercise I almost entirely 
attribute my phenomenal .strength of later 
days. 

One day I discovered that by a powerful 
movement of the arm I had sprung the ring 
out of shape. I procured a stronger one, 
which also was soon forced into elliptical 
form by the action of my biceps. I daily 
felt my muscles developing, and before long 
broke ropes and chains, and performed other 
unusual feats of strength. 

When I was a little over fifteen years of 
age, giving way once more to my restless 
disposition, I ran away and joined a circus. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 43 

This, of course, was without my father's 
knowledge and against his wishes, but he 
did not then interfere, thinking that I would 
soon tire of the occupation and return home. 
I led this life for over a year, traveling 
everywhere with the circus, and imagining 
myself to be the happiest boy on earth. 
Everything in the way of feats of strength 
I tried, and everything I bent my mind to 
I eventually accomplished. Thus I early 
learned the important lesson that force of zvill 
is one of the principal requisites for the 
accomplishment of feats of strength. 

At length my father, coming to the con- 
clusion that I would not return home of my 
own accord, resolved to force me to do so by 
legal means ; so one evening, as I was per- 
forming at the Hippodrome in Paris, a war- 
rant was sworn out for my arrest, to be 
served on me after the show. The manager, 
however, learnt of it and planned my escape. 
It being absolutely impossible for me to leave 
the Hippodrome in any ordinary manner with- 
out being seen and arrested, a stratagem was 



44 STRENGTH. 

planned and executed. We were always pre- 
pared for accidents to employes, which were 
of frequent occurrence, so taking advantage of 
this fact I lay down on a stretcher, and, after 
being well covered up with blankets, four 
men carried me out of the building, pretend- 
ing I was a wounded man. The unsuspect- 
ing officers,, who were waiting to arrest me, 
inquired what had occurred, and one of my 
bearers informed them that a stable-man had 
been badly injured by a kick from a horse, 
and was being carried to a hospital. Three 
blocks from the hospital they took me down a 
dark alley, when I jumped up and, running to 
a railway station, boarded a train for Havre, 
from where I sailed to the New World. 

On my arrival in America I performed feats 
of strength in museums and other places of 
amusement, being paid at the rate of from 
$200 to $300 per week. During 1 878 I returned 
to the Old World, and exhibited before most of 
the universities and crowned heads of Europe. 

Even at that early age I often found my 
strength of use for other purposes than mere 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 47 

exhibition, as the following occurrence will 
illustrate: One night in October, 1878, when 
passing through Strasburg, Alsace, whilst walk- 
ing with some friends along Kanal Strasse, I 
heard a woman's cry for help. I ran in the 
direction from which the voice came, and 
had not gone far when I saw a Germ^an soldier 
of a Uhlan regiment assaulting a girl. I took 
him by the collar and gave him a severe shak- 
ing, whereupon he drew his sword and slashed 
me savagely across the head. The force of 
the blow felled me to the ground, but only for 
an instant, as I was quickly on my feet again 
and a fierce fight for life ensued. He was 
armed with his long sword, and I, bleeding 
and half-dazed, was without any weapon. It 
was going pretty hard with me when providen- 
tially I espied a loose paving stone, which I 
made a dash for and captured. With this in 
my hand I rushed at the big Uhlan, and, 
dodging a fierce sword-cut, hit him over the 
shoulder with the stone with such force 
that it broke his collar bone and brought him 
to the ground ; and then, from loss of blood, I 



48 STRENGTH. 

fell senseless beside him, and knew nothing 
more until next day, when I found myself 
in the St. Charles Hospital, where I lay for 
five weeks, hovering between life and death. 
On my recovery the soldier was tried, 
received six weeks' imprisonment, and was 
degraded from his rank of sergeant. As a 
memento of this fierce conflict I shall bear 
to the grave the mark of his saber cut. 

In 1880 I again came to America, and per- 
formed feats of strength throughout the coun- 
try. 

An incident happened at Detroit a few 
years later, which is illustrative of the interest 
taken in athletics at that time. The occur- 
rence was reported as follows by the Detroit 
Free Press of February 15, 1887: 

" Any one driving on Woodward, or near the 
City Hall, yesterday, certainly found it difficult, 
as the vicinity of the great building was packed 
with spectators, watching and stretching their 
necks to see if Sampson, the strong man, was in 
sight. It was stated that he intended to lift one 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 49 

of the cannons which are placed on either side of 
the City Hall. This, the people said, was impossi- 
ble, but, should the statement be true, they would 
all like to see it done; so consequently the place 
was jammed. At 1.30 Sampson was to perform 
that marvelous feat. At 1.20 the crowd cheered: 
'Here he comes!' There were three open car- 
riages in view ; in the first one was Sampson and 
the proprietor of the museum, in the two follow- 
ing were the gentlemen with whom the strong 
man made the bet. As Mr. Sampson and his 
escort left their carriages to go to the cannon 
they found it a great difficulty — some would 
make room for them to pass, others in the rear 
would crowd to get a better view of the party. 
Finally they got to the appointed place. Then 
there was a hush; not a word was heard from the 
crowd, for the strong man tried again and again, 
but without success. Then the lookers-on said: 
'Oh, he can't lift it!' Others again said: 'I 
knew that before I came.' Then Sampson, white 
with rage, took off his coat, stooped, put his back 
underneath the tremendous cannon, lifted it out 
of its socket, and dropped it to the ground. Then 
came cheers from forty-eight to fifty thousand 



50 STRENGTH. 

people, ' Hurrah for Sampson ! ' The crowd was 
so overjoyed that they almost carried Sampson 
to the carriage. What a job it was to have the 
cannon put back in the socket is beyond imagina- 
tion. The officials, at least, said if they had had 
the idea that Sampson possessed the strength to 
lift anything so heavy as that, he would never 
have got permission." 

In 1889, with the intention of visiting Paris 
for a period of rest, and to see the great exhi- 
bition, I left the United States on the steamer 
City of Paris, bound for Liverpool. I was then 
thirty years of age, but had not yet learned the 
full extent of my powers. 

On the voyage I made many friends, and 
gave two exhibitions, one for the benefit of the 
Soldiers' Home, the other for the relatives of 
two firemen who had died on the trip. One of 
the audience at the latter performance (a mem- 
ber of the great brewing firm of Bass & Co. of 
England, wdio resided in Brooklyn, and whose 
name is, as well as I can recollect, Radcliff) 
brought me a piece of chain, which . he had 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 51 

found lying abont, and asked me if I could 
break it. I answered that it was a mere 
nothing- to do so — a response I would hardly 
have made, had I not just before been one of a 
party at dinner who drank more champagne 
than was conducive to caution or modesty. As 
the chain could bear a strain of two tons, the 
gentleman thought himself perfectly safe when 
he offered to bet me ;^io ($50.00) that I could 
not break it. I, however, accepted the wager 
and essayed to perform the task, without, how- 
ever, accomplishing it at the first attempt. 
The failure made me only the more deter- 
mined to succeed, and gathering my force for a 
final effort, and intensely concentrating my 
will-power, I tested my strength as I had never 
before. Slowly the chain stretched, and then 
broke with a loud snap — the success being 
doubly satisfactory, in that I both won my bet 
and for the first time realized something of the 
extent of my strength, which I then began to 
think was almost limitless. 

On arriving in London, a week or so after 
landing, I found the papers full of the exploit 



52 STRENGTH. 

and giving long accounts of my other feats of 
strength. This notoriety resulted in the man- 
agers of the principal places of amusement offer- 
ing me engagements, and I eventually agreed to 
appear at the Royal Aquarium for i^io ($50.00) 
per week and half of the gross receipts, much 
better terms than had ever before been heard 
of in London for like performances. I can say, 
without boasting, that as the result of my 
appearance I was the " lion of London" for 
many months. Upon accepting this engage- 
ment I gave up the idea of going to Paris ; and 
work, instead of rest, became my object. 

Several events occurred during the five 
months of my engagement at the Aquarium, 
which are not without interest as casting light 
on the vicissitudes and trials encountered by 
the professional strong-man. I shall give an 
account of some of them, by quoting extracts 
from London papers : 



( The Star, Tuesday, September 10, i88g.) 
" A person went to the Westminster Aquarium 




LIGHT DUMB-BELL EXERCISE NO. 1 —READY. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 55 

the other evening with some sovereigns and a 
steel chain in his pocket and a disinclination to 
believe in the strength of the strong man, Samp- 
son. Producing the chain when Sampson was 
about to begin his performance, he offered him a 
sovereign for every link that he succeeded in 
breaking. Sampson examined the chain, then 
holding it up in sight of the audience, he closed 
the fingers of his left hand over one of the links. 
A loud snap was heard — the link was broken! 
Sampson went quietly on with his task, and a suc- 
cession of snaps followed. He was smashing the 
steel links like matchwood between his terrible 
fingers. When seven or eight of them had gone, 
the astonished stranger cried, ' Hold, enough ! ' 
and felt for his purse. He had only four sover- 
eigns in it." 

( T/ie London Sportsman^ Wednesday^ A iigiist /./, 
i88g.) 
" Sampson, the strong man, found his muscles 
extremely useful the other night. He was having 
a walk in company with a friend, when they met 
two 'sky-larking lobsters from the barracks.' The 
soldiers thought they would have a joke at the 



56 STRENGTH. 

expense of the two, and pushed Sampson's com- 
panion into the gutter. Then the man of might 
rose up — not in his wrath, for he is an extremely 
good-tempered man — and took hold of the two 
military gentlemen. Their craniums rattled 
together like unpacked eggs, and the two warriors 
soon felt certain that it is better to ' know your 
man' before- you take him on. Sampson and his 
friend walked on in peace. We remember, not 
long ago, a somewhat similar case, when an indi- 
vidual who had gained a name as a pugilist was 
attacked by highwaymen. The footpads had such 
a drubbing that they laid up for a fortnight." 



Before my arrival in England strong-men 
were seldom seen in London theaters, and 
when one did appear his reception was not 
enthusiastic and his salary proportionately 
small ; but after my first week's appearance 
strong-men turned up from everywhere, and 
the wages paid them were phenomenal. What 
was thought of my performances is shown by 
the following extract from The Era, a well- 
known London paper : 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 57 

A MODERN SAMSON. 

" ' O ! it is excellent to have a giant's strength; 
but it is tyrannous to use it like a giant.' Thus 
Shakespeare. But with all reverence, be it said, 
Shakespeare didn't know everything, and was 
occasionally inclined to be too dogmatic. 
Whether or not it is tyrannous to use a giant's 
strength like a giant depends entirely upon cir- 
cumstances. A giant's strength would be very 
useful to a dock laborer, for instance, and would 
enable him to command such wages as would pre- 
clude the possibility of his going out on strike, and 
the necessity to demonstrate in Hyde Park on 
Sundays. A giant's strength would be a very 
good thing to possess about the. time when bailiffs 
wish to distrain for income tax unpaid, or 
mother-in-law, invited for a week, had stayed a 
month and refused to budge, and there are innum- 
erable other circumstances under which it would 
be anything but tyrannous to use it. Samson of 
old possessed a giant's strength, and would have 
been spared calamities dire had he used it to 
strangle Delilah what time she was making prep- 
arations to shear his beautiful locks. A modern 
Samson has arisen, and for the past few weeks his 



58 STRENGTH. 

extraordinary doings have excited the wonder of 
all visitors to the Westminster Aquarium. This 
latest addition of the strongest man in the world 
is indeed a marvel, and as evidence that he is not 
guilt}^ of humbug or trickery he boldly offers to 
give large sums of mone}^ to those who can accom- 
plish his feats, and to wager the most liberal odds 
that he will succeed in doing things that are 
seemingly impossible. The simplest of his exhi- 
bitions is the bending and breaking of a shilling 
with his fingers. With a single blow of his fist — 
protected only by a handkerchief — he breaks a 
couple of steel chains that have been tested to bear 
a strain of about 3,000 pounds. With a straight pull 
he breaks to pieces a chain at which three men 
have tugged and tugged in vain. But most 
remarkable of all is the snapping of strong chains 
by the mere expansion of the muscles. Sampson 
puts a double chain bracelet-like around his 
biceps; he takes a long breath, he raises his fore- 
arm; the muscles begin to swell, and, in less time 
than it takes to tell it, snap go the chains. A 
similar feat is performed by the development of the 
muscles of the chest. His final feat is the extra- 
ordinary one of swaying to and fro a dozen pow- 




LIGHT DUMB-BELL EXERCISE NO. 1— PICKING UP WITH UNBENT KNEES. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 61 

erful young men, who on either side of him grasp 
an iron bar and resist his efforts." 

I now felt that no man living could equal 
me in feats of strength, and backed my opinion 
by publishing my challenge that I would bet 
anybody ;^500 ($2,500) to ;^ioo ($500) that they 
could not duplicate my performance. 

This challenge was not accepted until 
November of that year, when Sandow noti- 
fied his willingness to compete. The test 
was one of the most remarkable incidents 
of my life. My competitor was so noted a 
man, and such a favorite with the public, 
that on the day of the contest 10,000 people 
had actually to be turned away from the door, 
after the house was so packed that there was 
not even standing room for another person. 
As much as from ten to twenty guineas was 
paid for box seats that night. The result of 
the contest was highly unsatisfactory and 
indeed shameful. Sandow, amongst other 
things, did not even use the materials pro- 
vided for the contest, but substituted others 



62 STRENGTH. 

prepared for his own use. Matters were con- 
ducted in such an unfair manner that event- 
ually I left the stage, and the audience, not 
comprehending the true state of the case, 
were loud in their denunciation of me. 
There was, however, soon afterward, an en- 
tire change of opinion on the part of the 
public, as they came to realize the scandalous 
character of the proceedings. 

The following newspaper extracts, and let- 
ters from myself and from persons eminent 
in athletics, throw much light on the subject, 
and set forth the views now generally held 
across the water: 

(St. Steplieii's Review, November g, i88g.) 
"It is a great pity that the competition between 
Sampson and Sandow at the Aquarium was not 
properly arranged in all its details before it took 
place. As it was, Sampson was really very badly 
treated, and his complaint that he did not get fair 
play was thoroughly well founded. Lords Queens- 
berry and De Clifford did not hear the original 
challenge, and therefore did not understand the 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 65 

nature of the contest. I did hear it, and Sampson 
most distinctly stated that his intention was to 
perform any feat whatever that he is capable of, 
and that Sandow would have to do each one after 
him to win his money. He even explained that, 
owing- to the limit of time, he always omits more 
than half of his performance at the Aquarium, and 
that he certainly should not bind himself to do 
only such feats as he was in the habit of doing on 
the Aquarium stage if Sandow came up to com- 
pete with him. In the face of this, however, the 
referees on Saturday prevented Sampson from 
breaking a strap round his chest, just because this 
wa.s not on his usual programme. It is pretty 
certain Sandow would have failed in this, for he 
only just managed the easier effort of breaking 
the wire strand. Besides this, Sandow never even 
attempted to break a chain with his hands, although 
Sampson did so successfully. It is no discredit to 
Sandow's reputation that he should not be able to 
do all that Sampson can. It is quite certain that 
Sandow on his own side can do many things that 
Sampson can not, and if he were the challenger, 
under similar circumstances he would win. The 

point is that Sampson challenged Sandow to come 
5 



66 STRENGTH. 

on the stage and do all that he (Sampson) can do; 
and then, behold ! Sampson is not allowed by the 
referees to show his full strength. That he has 
been hardly used is certain." 



{Sportsman, November p, i88g.) 
" Sir: In face of the prominence given to mis- 
statements concerning my match with Sandow on 
Saturday evening last, I will thank you to publish 
the facts, which I, as the challenger in the 
match referred to, am entitled to make public. I, 
the challenger, accepted ^loo as against my ;^5oo 
that Sandow could not go through m)^ perform- 
ance or do iny feats of strength. In regard to the 
referees, or Captain Molesworth's office in conduct- 
ing the matter, I may say that I was not consulted, 
as I expected fair play. Having laid heavy odds, I 
appeal to an unprejudiced public to read my short 
account of the competition and form their own 
conclusions as to the justice of the decision 
arrived at. 

" vSandow had to do what I did. I led off with 
^-inch gas-pipe, which I bent on my chest, 
straightened out again on my arm, bent it on my 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 67 

arm again, and straightened it again, finishing off 
by breaking it on my leg. Sandow, after a des- 
perate struggle, succeeded in a space of time 
three times as long as that occupied by me in 
bending and straightening the bar once only. I 
had had with me, as the challenger, bars from ^ 
to i^ inches in thickness. These the referees re- 
fused to permit me to use. Why ? After strug- 
gling with the thin one, as all spectators will 
admit, could he have succeeded with very much 
stronger gas-piping ? I then produced a leathern 
strap, with a resisting capacity of 3,000 pounds; this 
I was not allowed to break round my chest. Why? 
Forsooth, because I had not used a strap before in 
my performances. I then produced twenty-two 
strands of picture wire, which I burst with ease by 
the first expansion of the chest. Sandow, after five 
futile efforts and incessant twisting, succeeded in 
unloosening the twisted coil. I then produced two 
champagne bottles, one full and one empty, in order 
to perform a plain feat of extraordinary finger 
strength, and nothing more. I, the challenger, 
laying heavy odds, was again refused. I. then took 
a chain bearing the closest inspection, and by a 
straight pull broke it. After having done this I 



68 STRENGTH. 

passed it to Sandow, and he refused to do it. This 
is only one of the points on which he should have 
been declared vanquished. I then took a double 
chain to break on my muscle, and did so. Sandow's 
lower arm is an inch thicker and his upper arm, 
where the chain is broken, three inches smaller 
than mine. Sandow's excuse was that his forearm 
would not admit of the chain being slipped on. 
I therefore extended the chain by a link, but 
Sandow produced a chain from his pocket, which 
he rapidly slipped on and broke without offering 
it for examination and test. It is useless to write 
more. In order to substantiate my claim, and 
to prove that my reputation and my money have 
suffered from the want of fair play, pray make it 
known that I do not wish Sandow even to go 
through the whole of my performance; but to 
break only one chain which I will break, to come 
from his arm to mine. I stake ^5,000 of mine 
against ;^5oo only of Sandow's money that he can 
not do this plain feat. I am, 

"C. A. vSampson, 
"Still the Strongest on EartJi." 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 69 

"49 Broad St., Bloomsbury, W. C, 

"November 2, 1889. 

"Dear Sir: Just a line to say that I, at least, 
to-night felt ashamed of my own countrymen at 
the way they shouted and howled whenever you 
attempted to speak or perform. Instead of giving 
you a fair trial, the majority present did every- 
thing they could to prevent your performance. 

" I am sure from what I overheard, many had 
come organized to kick up a disturbance, and 
others having bet on Sandow did all they could 
by their continued interruption to get you into 
such a state of excitement so as to prevent you 
from going through your performance properly. 

" I regret that you did not, under the circum- 
stances, refuse to proceed and at once retire. 
Wishing you a long and prosperous career before 
the public. 

"Yours faithfully, 

" G. A. Marshall. 

"'Sampson,' 

" Royal Aquarium, Westminster." 



70 STRENGTH. 

''Waite's School of Arms, 
"London, November 4, 1889. 
"Mr. C. a. Sampson: 

" Dear Sir: As eye witnesses of the farcical 
performance which took place on Saturday last, 
we feel duty bound, as lovers of fair play, to ten- 
der you our sympathies, as it was evident to us 
that the public feeling was against you before 
ever you commenced. 

" If we understood your challenge aright (we 
make no reference to the stake) it was that your 
opponent should compete with you in the feats 
that you were in the habit of performing at the 
Royal Aquarium, and Captain MolcswortJi dis- 
tinctly stated this in his opening speech to the spec- 
tators. Therefore we can not at all understand 
why the judges should have prohibited you from 
doing this, neither can we understand why the 
dumb-bell was introduced. If we might make a 
suggestion in the event of another contest, it is 
that all materials be properly prepared to the sat- 
isfaction and in the presence of the competitors, 
with a competent judge on either side, who thor- 
oughly understands the materials, so that there 
can be no disputing on the stage. As it was, in 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 73 

our humble and honest opinion, you did not have 
fair play, unless we are in error as to the terms of 
agreement. 

"We are, dear sir, yours faithfully, 

"Mace & Waite." 

"Manor of St. John's, 
" Waterford, Ireland, November 6, 1889. 
" Sir: Will you allow me, as one who takes an 
interest in sport, and has a true admiration for those 
who excel in feats of bodily strength and endur- 
ance, to express the disappointment I felt at 
reading of the disgraceful manner in which you 
were treated at the Aquariuiu last Saturday even- 
ing. Though I have never had the pleasure of 
witnessing your wonderful feats of strength, yet I 
sympathize deeply with you on account of the 
lamentable want of fair play you received from a 
really unsportsmanlike British public. Trusting 
you will excuse my taking the liberty of expressing 
my feelings — my indignant feelings — at the way 
you were treated, 

" I remain, sir, your faithful admirer, 

"A. R. Bonaparte Wyse. 
"C. A. Sampson, Esq., 

"5//// the Strongest Man on Earth." 



74 STRENGTH. 

"Junior Carlton Club, 

"Pall Mall, S.W. 
"Sir: I was present at the performance at the 
Aquarium on Saturday, and I consider you to 
have been most unfairly treated. I also consider 
you to be a stronger man than Sandow, and that 
you are entitled to call yourself the strongest man 
in the world without doubt. I should like to call 
and tell you this personally. Kindly send me a 
line to the above address to say if I can do so, and 
at what hour. Yours truly, 

"C. Pollen." 



"London, November 6, 1889. 
"Mr. C. Sampson: 

"Dear Sir: A few lines on the unfairness of 
the competition on Saturday evening, and also the 
foul conspiracy against you, and being no friend 
of such conduct as was dealt out, I would have, if 
placed in your position, a searching inquiry of 
such a nature that any further attempts of that 
kind should be exposed. You have your reputa- 
tion at stake, so to prove that, test by the best 
mechanics, and in presence of responsible persons, 
the material you used on Saturday evening; also 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 76 

that SandoTV used, and prove that Sandow's mate- 
rial would not break, as was shown, and that yours 
will, A lover of fair play sends you the one used 
by Sandow to test. Use your own judgment the 
best course to adopt. You have my sympathy, 
therefore have sent you the material to work on. 
" Yours sincerely, 

"A Well Wisher." 

"3 MiDDLETON Road, 
"Wandsworth Common, London, S. W., 

" November 7, 1889. 
"C. A. Sampson, Esq.: 

"Dear Sir: I am greatly touched with the 
expressions of thanks contained in your letter of 
yesterday, and it proves more than anything else 
the sincerity of your assertions. What I said in 
my letter to the Sportsman is only a very mild 
expression of my feelings respecting the unjust 
and disgraceful treatment you received at the 
hands of both the judges and the audience. Al- 
though only an amateur myself, I have had also 
to contend against the jealousy of others, but 
fortunately I could afford to laugh at it, and have 
maintained my superiority in my own line for 



76 STRENGTH. 

more than fourteen years. I admire the brave and 
plucky fight you are making single-handed, and 
I sincerely wish you every success in your just 
endeavors to maintain your position. If I can be 
of any service to you I shall be glad to do so. 
" I remain, dear sir, yours faithfully, 

" E. Ferdinand Lemaire." 

Comment upon these letters and extracts 
would be superfluous. 

Before my contest with Sandow my perform- 
ance had chiefly consisted of breaking coins 
with my fingers, and snapping iron bars and 
chains by sheer strength of arm, and bursting 
chains, wire ropes, and straps by the expansive 
power of my lungs and biceps. Sandow's per- 
formance was more in the line of lifting heavy 
weights, which fact decided me to return to 
America and practice this particular feat. 
Having made up my mind to do this, I sailed 
on the Teutonic, and on landing at New York 
went direct to my home in Detroit, which 
place I reached in March, 1891. I immediately 
ordered the necessary weights, etc., to be con- 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 79 

structed, and after short practice felt sure that 
I could equal or excel any man on earth in this 
line, so in the following July I returned to 
London to publicly test my powers. I made 
harness lifting my specialty, and on the 23d of 
November, 1891, broke all records of the kind 
by lifting 508 pounds more than ever had been 
raised before in this manner. Herewith are 
two newspaper accounts of the event : 



{Sporting Life, London, November 2/f., i8gi.) 

" Sampson's Prodigious Lift — Over 3,800 
Pounds Lifted by the Neck. — An overwhelm- 
ing gathering of spectators tried to get into the 
theater at the Royal Aquarium yesterday after- 
noon, when C. A. Sampson gave a special per- 
formance, diiring which he essayed the greatest 
lift that has ever been attempted by a human 
being. The sight of the vast attendance must 
have been very gratifying to Sampson, who has 
been in enforced retirement for some time past, 
owing to an accident to his right arm, and the 
applause that was showered upon him showed 



80 STRENGTH. 

that his efforts were appreciated. Among those 
present were Eugene Sandow, Professor Atkin- 
son, Launcelot Elliott, Algernon Spencer, and 
Reginald Spencer, besides a host of theatrical 
celebrities, both male and female. 

" Shortly after 5.30 Sampson appeared, dressed 
in a green and maroon costume, trimmed with 
gold. He spoke of his first appearance in Eng- 
gland, when strong men were an unknown com- 
modity, and he also called attention to the fact 
that he was the first to discover the merits of 
Cyclops, who was really the first to start the inter- 
national matches. Sampson then issued a chal- 
lenge to all the strong men, particularizing Louis 
Cyr, whom he invited to test his latest lift — two 
horses, two men, and a platform. This new feat 
is done in the following manner: The platform, 
which weighs 600 poimds, is suspended on four 
iron chains, and at each corner there is a run- 
ning wheel, which slides up the four brass 
rods that support the platform upon which 
Sampson stands. These chains are attached to 
a leather collar, Avhich Sampson places on his 
neck, and then grasping the two hand-rails, he 
stands ready for his lift. When everything was 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 81 

in readiness Sampson ordered out the two horses, 
and Mr. Ludford, their owner, led them on the 
stage. One was a big bay, standing i6 hands 
3 inches, and weighing- 1,450 pounds ; the 
other was a gray, standing 16 hands 3 inches, 
and weighing 1,375 pounds, so that there was 
2,825 pounds of horse-flesh on the platform. 
In addition to this, two men, named J. Bevin 
(weighing 12 stone 9 pounds) and H. Baker 
(weighing 11 stone 13 pounds), stood on the plat- 
form to hold the horses. This made the total 
weight 3,809 pounds. In order to insure perfect 
fairness, four judges were appointed to watch 
the platform, and see whether it was lifted clear 
from the stage. These were Professor John 
Atkinson, Beverley Jevons, Mr. Vansittart, and 
Mr. Snow. Ed. Plummer, representing the Sport- 
ing Life, was selected to go on the top platform 
with Sampson, to see that he used no unfair 
leverage. 

"After a little adjustment of the tackle Samp- 
son braced himself for a supreme effort, and 
lifted the mass about an inch from the floor. 
The spectators shouted themselves hoarse, but 
Sampson was not satisfied, and tried again, but 



82 STRENGTH. 

this time he scored a failure. Then he asked 
for a few moments' rest, and tried again for the 
third time, which resulted in a pronounced suc- 
cess. The platform was gradually raised up 
until fully two inches of daylight could be seen 
under it. The effort was a mighty one, and 
the recoil proved too much for Sampson, for 
when he tried to put his load down he fell 
prone on his face, fainting, and many people 
thought that he had burst a blood vessel. Real- 
izing the athlete's danger, the Sporting Life rep- 
resentative quickly removed the tackle from 
Sampson's neck and lifted him to his feet, where 
he stood dazed for some time; but after a res- 
torative had been administered Sampson was 
able to appear and bow his thanks. This lift 
now forms the best of its kind in the world, and 
supersedes the famous harness lift of William 
B. Curtis, the American amateur, which was 3,300 
pounds." 

{Daily Graphic, November 2^, i8gi.) 

"The Strongest Man on Earth. — Sampson, 
the strong man, who is exhibiting his powers at 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 83 

the Westminster Aquarium, has lately accom- 
plished the feat of lifting a load of over a ton and 
a half. Two horses, two men, and a platform were 
the component parts of a weight of 3,800 pounds, 
which Sampson raised after he had gone through 
a familiar exhibition of his bar-lifting and chain- 
breaking capabilities. The special apparatus re- 
quired for the feat was formed of four uprights, 
high enough to admit the horses and men beneath 
a platform, on which Sampson stood. From the 
ends of a leather collar round his neck depended 
iron chains, which were attached in turn to a 
movable platform below, made to slide vertically 
on wheels. One horse, a bay, weighed 1,450 pounds, 
and stood 16 hands 3 inches high; the other, a gray, 
weighed 1,375 pounds, and stood 16 hands 2 inches; 
the men weighed 12 stone 9 pounds and 11 stone 13 
pounds respectively, and the platform 600 pounds. 
A committee watched the performance, which was 
also keenly scrutinized by the audience. Among 
these was the redoubtable Sandow. Mounting the 
upper platform by means of a ladder, and placing 
the collar round his neck, Sampson braced himself 
for the feat, amid breathless silence. To accom- 
plish it appeared beyond even his powers. His 



84 STRENGTH. 

form, in proportion to the enormous weight in the 
huge structure beneath him, seemed absurdly in- 
adequate. ' Keep the horses quiet ! ' he sang out. 
* Ready ! ' He bent to the task, and strained till 
his veins seemed about to burst. Then the plat- 
form was seen to move slightly, but only slightly. 
Sampson tried again — and failed. Begging for a 
short rest, he made a third attempt after a few 
seconds' interval, and, following a supreme effort, 
the gigantic load was seen to move to a height of 
at least three inches. The platform fell with a 
resounding crash that was drowned in the deaf- 
ening applause. It was a hardly-won triumph, 
though. Sampson fell forward with a gasp and 
groan, and lay prostrate for several seconds after- 
ward." 



Four weeks later I again set a new mark, 
which I firmly believe will never be beaten, 
by lifting 4,008 pounds. For this perform- 
ance I was awarded the champion gold 
belt of the world. The diploma that accom- 
panied it is reproduced on page 10. 

During this and my other trips to England 




UGHT DUMB-BELL EXERCISE-NO. 2. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 87 

I performed throughout that country in all the 
principal towns, attracting large audiences 
everywhere. 

In May, 1893, I again returned to America 
and made, what I considered, the most gratify- 
ing success of my life ; for, as the result of 
taking part in the athletic competition at the 
World's Fair, in Chicago on September 4th, I 
was awarded, against all comers, the gold and 
diamond medal. This trophy I value above 
any other I have won, both for its unusual 
artistic beauty, and because, in conjunction 
with the other medals I now possess, it is a 
definite and indisputable recognition that I am 
what I claim to be — the champion strong-man 
of the world. 

Following is what was said of the perform- 
ance by the Chicago Herald the next day : 



{Chicago Herald^ September 5, iSgj.) 

" Festival Hall Crowded Again — Excellent 
Music and Sampson's Exhibition of Strength 
Heartily Applauded. — Festival Hall did its 



88 STRENGTH. 

usual immense business yesterday afternoon at 
the international entertainment. Few of the 
6,500 seats were empty. Beginning with the 
overture by Captain Hecker's Elgin band of 
sixty, there was much applause for each number. 
The Guatemala Indians played the marimba 
and the Hungarian orchestra executed several 
selections., 

" The best feature was the exhibition of giant 
strength by Sampson. He broke, with his bare 
hands and arms, chains which Chief Murphy of 
the fire department had tested and kept in his 
possession until used in public. He had them 
hitched to a team of horses and a four and one- 
half ton engine. Sampson broke them with 
apparent ease. He also had twelve guards stand 
upon his chest, his body being suspended between 
two chairs." 



I m.ay here add, that my challenge to the 
world, offering odds of ten to one that no one 
could perform my feats, has not been accepted, 
though it has lain open since two years before 
my victory at the Exposition. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 89 

It would occupy too much space, and try the 
patience of my readers, were I to describe at 
length all my different feats. I will, however, 
add a few more newspaper extracts giving 
accounts of a few of my performances. 

{^Evening Post, Chicago, September i, i8gj.) 

" It is Sampson against Sandow. The former 
was privately ' viewed ' yesterday at the Grotto, 
and on Monday night will begin his engagement 
there. He is a handsome fellow, of rather more 
slender and perhaps more elegant figure than the 
strong man of the Trocadero, and breaks chains 
and coins with a merry nonchalance that suggests 
the ancient Samson and the bonds he snapped 
like so much flax. He, too, has a chest feat. San- 
dow holds three horses upon his breast; Sampson 
holds up a dozen men whose total weight is a ton. 
On Monday night he will 'hold up' eighteen mem- 
bersf of the orchestra — with their instruments 
thrown in for make- weight. He holds a champion 
belt for lifting in harness 4,000 pounds, and he 
takes his ante-breakfast exercise with a 400-pound 
dumb-bell. Sampson wants to meet Sandow in 



90 STRENGTH. 

competition. He looks on Sandow as a Philistine 
and wants to ' spoil ' him. A match may take 
place at the Grotto. The two men met at the 
Royal Aquarium in London, in November, 1889. 
But the competition — which was witnessed by this 
writer — was not altogether satisfactory. Sampson 
and his managers considered that he was very badly 
treated, and there was some ground for their dis- 
satisfaction. It is, of course, no abridgement of the 
reputation of Sandow to express a doubt of his 
ability to do all that Sampson can. Sandow can 
do many things which vSampson can not do. At 
the Aquarium competition, the referees. Lords 
Queensberry and De Clifford, declined to allow 
Sampson to test Sandow except with the feats 
which Sampson had been performing nightly. 
They held that the challenge should be confined to 
those strictly. All of these Sandow did perform, 
and thus made a successful response to the chal- 
lenge. But when Sampson proposed that Sandow 
should try to break a certain strength of leather 
strap around the chest, the referees declined to 
allow it on the ground that Sampson had not been 
regularly performing that feat at the Aquarium. 
Whether Sandow could have broken it is an open 




LIGHT DUMB-BELL EXERCISE NO. 2. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 93 

question. If the two men meet at the Grotto let 
this be the chief and test feat to illustrate their 
comparative muscular power." 

{Newark, N./., Times.) 

"Sampson a Wonder — Will Break Chains that 
Brewery Horses Can't Break — An Exhi- 
bition TO BE Given To-Day of a Marvelous 
Feat of Strength — Sampson's Opinion of 
Sandow — An Interesting History. 
" Sampson, the strong man, who is electrifying 
the audiences at Waldmann's Theater this week, 
came by his immense muscular power in a strange 
way. 

"According to the story told by Sampson last 
night to a Times man, he, at the age of fourteen 
years, was struck by lightning. The shock ren- 
dered him unconscious for several hours, and he 
was confined to his bed for six months after. 

" Soon after his recovery Sampson began to 
take on flesh and soon developed great muscular 
strength. Inside of a year the bed-ridden patient 
for six months was giving displays of strength, 
and he has kept it up for eighteen years. 



94 STRENGTH. 

" Sampson claims to be the strongest man on 
earth. This title he claims he fairly earned in a 
test in London; with harness, Sampson lifted a 
dead weight of 4,000 pounds. 

"According to Sampson, Sandow, the much 
talked about ' perfect man,' is a fancy-weight lifter. 
Sampson declares Sandow is not in it with him, 
else the latter would accept his challenge for 
$10,000 a side (a $250 forfeit for which was posted 
with the Police Gazette)^ at six feats at weight- 
lifting. Sandow never answered Sampson's chal- 
lenge. 

" Bobby Manchester, proprietor of the French 
Folly Company, would wager a good bit on Samp- 
son against Sandow. Manchester is a game bettor 
on a good thing. Recently he won $5,000 on the 
Fitzsimmons-Creedon fight. Sampson is the origi- 
nator of chain-breaking feats. Last night at Wald- 
mann's six men tried to pull apart a chain that 
Sampson snapped asunder on the biceps of his 
arm, 

" The latter claims that two horses can't break 
these chains, and this morning a practical test is 
to be made. At 11.00 a. m. two of Wiedenmayer's 
brewery horses will try to pull the chains apart. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 95 

If they succeed Sampson forfeits $ioo to charity. 
If he fails then to break similar chains he will 
forfeit another $ioo. The test will be made in 
front of Waldmann's Theater. 

" Sampson is about thirty-five years old, hand- 
some, and finely formed. He was born in Metz 
Lorraine, and came to America when but two 
years old. His father is a Frenchman and his 
mother of Spanish origin. In condition this 
modern Hercules weighs 175 pounds. At present 
the greatest feat in his daily performances is that 
of bearing an immense model of the Ferris wheel, 
lighted with electricity, containing twenty cars, 
on his chest." 



{Boston Herald^ Jtily 8, i8gj.) 

" Stronger than Two Horses — Sampson Exhibits 
His Great Strength in Private — Breaks 
WITH His Biceps a Steel Chain Which Two 
Large Horses Were Unable to Rend — 
Gives an Exhibition of His Powers and 
Explains His System of Training. 
" Sampson, the strong man, spent yesterday 

morning with his manager in driving all over 



96 STRENGTH. 

Boston to find a steel chain of three-eigliths-inch 
wire, which he desired to use in a private exhibi- 
tion, to be given at the house of engine 26, back 
of the Boston Theater. He was told by the hard- 
ware dealers, that the chain which he himself used 
to break over his biceps, a three-eighths-inch steel 
wire link, was stronger than any chain they sold. 
Being desirous of demonstrating to a skeptical 
contemporary sheet, which had published the 
story that he used acids on his chains, that he hon- 
estly performed his feats of strength, Mr. Samp- 
son obtained permission from the fire commis- 
sioners for an adequate test at the above-named 
place of the chains he used, and yesterday after- 
noon at 2.30 o'clock he gave the private exhibition. 

"Two chains of the sort Mr. Sampson breaks 
nightly were produced. If the strain were insuffi- 
cient to part the links he intended to break them 
then and there himself. Chief Webber, Chief 
Egan, Fire Commissioner Fitch, and a lot of 
reporters were present to witness the feat. 

"The two chains, which were linked so as just 
to fit the strong man's biceps, were fastened 
in such a way to a heavy wagon as to bear all the 
strain when it should be started. The wagfon 




LIGHT DUMB-BELL EXERCISE NO. 3. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 99 

happened to be loaded with cannel coal and was 
estimated to weigh 5,500 pounds. Two big, sleek 
horses were then brought out and hitched on to the 
chains. They started the wagon without the 
slightest injury to the chains. Heavy rocks were 
then placed under the wheels, and thus prevented 
the big horses from starting the wagon at all; 
but still the little steel chains remained intact. 
In the last trial the weight must have been several 
thousand pounds heavier. 

" Mr. Sampson then threw off his coat, and bar- 
ing his arm, adjusted the two chains to his great 
right bicep. He stiffened it once as a prelim- 
inary, and then, summoning up the phenomenal 
latent strength which is in him, he slowly drew 
up his forearm. The tension of muscles was 
tremendous and the perspiration started from his 
face in little rivulets. Snap! went one of the 
chains and flew several feet away. 

"As is his custom, he had expected to break 
both, but the chains having been slightly stretched 
by the horses, he failed. Being dissatisfied, how- 
ever, with the exhibition, he insisted on another 
trial. 

" Producing two other chains, and satisfying 



100 STRENGTH. 

everyone present that they were in all respects as 
sound as the others, he gave a still more wonderful 
exhibition of his strength by adjusting the two 
chains to his bicep and breaking them both by 
another muscular contraction. 

" There was no fake about this exhibition. 
Mr. wSampson has a standing stake of ^50 with a 
London sporting paper to meet any one in feats of 
strength. Cyr, the Canadian strong man, he has 
already vanquished. One of his feats is of grasp- 
ing a quart champagne bottle by the neck with 
his right hand, the bottle being filled with liquid, 
and working it up through his hand by his thumb 
and fingers until he has the bottle by the bottom 
resting on his palm. Try it with a fairly good- 
sized bottle and see if it is easy. 

" He was born in Alsace in 1851, and for twelve 
years has been breaking chains. He may con- 
tinue it, as he says, for a few years longer, if his 
strength lasts. But in lifting feats he may keep 
his strength for many years yet. 

"After the exhibition each reporter was pre- 
sented with a link of the steel chain he had 
broken." 




C^^.A 



^V^V^Uj^S^il/v^^,^^^^ 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 101 

{Sporting Life, London, August lo, i8gi.) 

"Sampson's Wonderful Feat — Working All Day 
Lifting Mammoth Weights. 

"Just how much strain the human frame can 
endure has always been a mooted point, but it is 
very doubtful if any human being ever went 
through such a muscle-wrenching and strength- 
exhausting performance as did Charles A. Samp- 
son at the Royal Aquarium, on Saturday, when 
he gave twenty of his ordinary performances 
instead of the two seances that make up his 
usual day's work. The cause of this marvelous 
exhibition was a controversy that arose between 
Mitchell Shmidt and Charles Sampson ten days 
ago, in which the first-named claimed that he 
could show feats of strength that were in no 
wise inferior to those of Sampson. The latter 
retorted in kind, alleging that while Shmidt 
could not do his (Sampson's) feats once, he 
could go through the performance himself 
twenty times in any one day. Shmidt, thinking 
he saw a chance to increase his bank capital, at 
once offered to bet Sampson ;^ioo that he could 
not make good his words. Just here a little 



102 STRENGTH. 

hitch occurred, as Chairman Ritchie informed 
Sampson and Shmidt that they could not settle 
any wager in the Aquarium, but if they liked 
to donate a certain sum to some charitable 
institution the test might take place in his place. 
This met the views of both men, and they 
signed an instrument, the gist of which is as 
follows : 

" ' Articles of agreement entered into this the 
first day of August, 1891, between Charles A. 
Sampson of Detroit, Mich., and Mitchell Shmidt 
of London, England, wherein Charles A. Samp- 
son agrees to go through his regular perform- 
ance twenty times during Saturday, August 
8th, between 12 o'clock meridian and 12 o'clock 
midnight. Failing to fulfill these articles of 
agreement, Sampson agrees to donate ;!^2o to 
the Westminster Hospital. Should Sampson ac- 
complish the twenty performances, then Shmidt 
must donate ;^2o to the Westminster Hospital. 
The whole ^^40 is deposited with Mr. Ritchie, 
who will forward same to Sporting Life, which 
will be final stakeholder. The performances to 
consist of the following feats : Lifting a bar- 
bell, weighing 100 pounds, with left hand ; lift- 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 105 

ing a bar-bell, weighing i6o pounds, with two 
hands ; lifting a bar-bell, weighing 200 pounds, 
with right hand ; lifting a bar-bell, weighing 
200 pounds, with two hands ; lifting a bar-bell, 
weighing 320 pounds, with right hand ; lifting 
a bar-bell weighing 320 pounds, with two hands; 
lifting a bar-bell, weighing 1,202 pounds, with 
two hands ; breaking- coins with the fingers ; 
breaking a short piece of chain with a straight 
pull ; breaking two bracelets on the left or 
right arm ; breaking chains with the fist; break- 
ing leather straps or chains on the chest. Should 
Sampson miss two tricks in any one of the first 
five performances, to be declared to have lost ; 
should Sampson miss three tricks in any one of 
the next fifteen performances he to be declared 
the loser ; Sampson to have the right to leave 
out any one trick that he may deem fit at each 
performance, and also to be allowed to arrange 
his programme as he sees fit ; Sampson to be 
allowed an interval of fifteen minutes between 
each performance, and also to be allowed his 
usual attendants and his doctor on the stage ; 
Eugene Sandow to act as Sampson's umpire, 
and Shmidt to act as his own umpire.' 



106 STRENGTH. 

"The only change in these articles was the 
substitution of Captain Tyler for Eugene San- 
dow as Sampson's umpire. The Sporting Life 
appointed E. Plummer to act as referee. 

" On the face of it Sampson was called upon to 
lift 51,640 pounds in dead weight, but as he went 
through the manual of arms with the 160-pound 
bar, he had to use three distinct lifts, so that 
his total or dead-weight lifting would be 61,240 
pounds. Just what amount of pressure was used 
in the breaking of the coins, chains, etc., is 
merely a matter of conjecture, but it must have 
been something enormous. Taking the per- 
formance in its entirety, it was a marvelous one. 

"Just before noon Mr. Shmidt made his way 
on to the stage, and examined the weights and 
chains. They were not put upon the scales, as 
Shmidt said he was satisfied that the implements 
were the same as Sampson used in his daily per- 
formance. It is a pity that Sampson did not 
elect to have his bells weighed, as he might 
have gained a world's record for dead-weight 
lifting. 

" Sampson elected to give three shows at every 
raising of the curtain, and this would give him 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 107 

more time to prepare his paraphernalia, and give 
him more rest. At first he worked a little slowly, 
but he soon warmed up, and finished his thirty- 
three feats (the breaking of the chains on the 
chest was left out this time). The three shows 
occupied just twenty-three minutes, which is 
about half the time that one ordinary show takes 
up. The second batch of shows were got 
through in 24 minutes 15 seconds. This time 
the full twelve feats were gone through, and in 
the coin-breaking Sampson split a three-penny 
piece, a sixpence, and a shilling. The seventh, 
eighth, and ninth time passed off without any 
special incident, but Sampson was perceptibly 
slower, taking 28 minutes 30 seconds for his 
thirty-six tricks. During the eleventh round 
Sampson struck his first snag. It was while 
he was breaking the short pieces of chain 
with the straight pull. The perspiration had 
saturated his gloves to such an extent that 
this chain slipped through his hands. Mr. 
Shmidt claimed a failure, which was not allowed. 
Shortly after this Sampson's right arm began 
to fail him, the iron bracelets cutting into his 
flesh like a knife. He signified his intention of 



108 STRENGTH. 

passing this feature, but the plaudits of the spec- 
tators nerved him up to a final effort, and he 
went through his task successfully. This turn 
took 5 1 minutes 43 seconds. From this point 
out there was no special incident, excepting 
that Mr. Shimdt asked to have the weights 
examined in order to see whether they had been 
changed. As the officials had never lost sight 
of the implements any substitution was impos- 
sible. The fifth turn took up 27 minutes 3 sec- 
onds, and the sixth, which made up the six- 
teenth, seventeenth, and eighteenth performances, 
occupied 32 minutes 30 seconds. The last two 
performances; which were begun shortly after 
II o'clock, were finished in 33 minutes. 
Twice while lifting the 200-pound bell, the 
weight overbalanced Sampson, but he finally 
elevated the implement in good style. Finding 
that he was getting dangerously tired, Sampson 
left out lifting of the 300-pound bell. The 
bracelets cut still farther into his arm, and 
when he had finished, that member was in 
a terrible condition, and it is very doubtful 
whether Sampson could have gone through 
another performance. Sampson was at work 




LIGHT DUMB-BELL EXERCISE NO. 3. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. Ill 

for 3 hours 40 minutes i second. He missed 
but seven feats out of the entire programme, 
leaving him a leeway of thirteen. 

" During the evening Mrs. Sandow watched 
the performance, and Professor Schalkenberg 
cheered the athlete with some splendid music 
on his electric orchestrion." 



{^Extract from London ^'■Tit Bits,'' 1885, and 
"Frankfurter-Zeitung. ' ' ) 
"A native of Alsace is now exhibiting his extra- 
ordinary muscular powers under the name of 
Sampson. Among his most interesting feats are 
the following: He takes an iron ring f-inch thick, 
which he slips over his upper arm, after rubbing 
the latter with oil. He then distends the muscles 
of his arm, and the ring assmnes an oval form, 
and is handed round among the spectators to con- 
vince them that 'there is no deception.' He next 
takes an iron chain, the links of which are f -inch in 
thickness, and, after waving it two or three times 
in the air, snaps it asunder with a jerk. The 
pieces are shown around. He afterward takes 
three chains — one in the left hand, the second 



112 STRENGTH. 

over the neck, and the third round the right wrist. 
All three are secured to the floor. Suddenly, 
springing' up from a stooping position, he breaks 
all three of them, ainid the plaudits of the crowd. 
Two other instances of his Herculean strength 
may be of interest. Last year Mons. Sampson 
entered a factory where a small engine was at 
work; he entered into a wager that he could stop 
it with his- arms. Everybody laughed at him. 
However, he made the attempt, and won his bet. 
Not long ago he was taking several ladies home 
from a party, when they encountered a group of 
rowdies who made some offensive remarks. vSamp- 
son struck fotir of the fellows to the ground, and 
their yells attracted the police, who, taking him 
for the aggressor, proceeded to handcuff him, to 
which he quietly submitted. But no sooner had 
he been thus secured than he snapped the chain 
and put the policemen to flight, after a fruitless 
endeavor to convince them of the real state of 
the case." 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 113 

{Buffalo Evening Times, February 27, 18^4.) 
"Mighty Sampson — He Breaks Iron Chains as 
Easy as Egg Shells — Supported Fifteen 
Musicians on a Platform Upon His Chest. 

"C. A. Sampson, 'the strong man,' who is with 
' The Paymaster ' company now at the Lyceum, 
performed some really wonderful feats last night. 
That which elicited the most unbounded applause 
was one illustrating the possibilities of muscular 
expansion. Taking a heavy iron chain which a 
blacksmith pronounced to be perfect in every 
link, Sampson placed it on his extended arm 
between the elbow and the shoulder. Then he 
slowly raised the arm, and when the forearm was 
parallel with the body, the chain snapped as if it 
were but a thread of egg shells, and fell to the 
floor. The Marquis of Queensberry once saw 
Sampson perform this feat in London, and as a 
reward gave him a gold chain of the same weight 
and pattern. 

" Sampson also supported a platform upon his 
chest upon which the entire Lyceum, fifteen in 
number, stood at one time and played an air. 
He also lifted dumb-bells and steel bars, weighing 
200 and 300 pounds, from the floor with one arm, 



114 STRENGTH. 

raising each straight before his head, and then 
slowly lowered it again. To illustrate the strength 
of his fingers, he broke in twain silver coins and 
iron disks. 

"After the performance Sampson gave a recep- 
tion to the physicians of the city, many of whom 
were present. Nearly all declared Sampson a 
perfect specimen of manly strength. 

" Sampson is perfectly sincere in his idea that 
he can defeat any pugilist living by allowing them 
to strike his adamantine flesh at close quarters, 
thus giving him a chance to break their arms. 
Yesterday he called on Jackson and proposed to 
fight him for $10,000 a side three months after his 
fight with Corbett is settled, but Jackson reiterated 
his determination to retire from the ring forever 
after that affair. It is quite within the range of 
possibility that Sampson may be matched against 
some good boxer. 

"John L. Sullivan's whilom friend, but now 
bitter enemy, Duncan B. Harrison of 'The Pay- 
master' company, said when he first heard of 
Sampson's scheme that he considered it supremely 
ridiculous, but he now admits that there may be 
something to it. 




LIGHT DUMB-BELL EXERCISE NO. 4 — RESTING WEIGHT ON TOES. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 117 

" By the way, Harrison was in Corbett's corner 
when he fought Jackson sixty-one rounds without 
result, and declares that it is true that the black 
man was suffering from an injured ankle. 

" ' It was nearly, if not quite, as large as the calf 
of his leg,' said Harrison, 'and if Jackson had 
then been the man that he is to-day, Corbett would 
probably have never been heard of east of the 
Rocky Mountains. Wonderfully as Corbett has 
improved since that time, he will have the task 
of his life to defeat Jackson in their coming 
encounter.' " 



{TJie Detroit Free Press, December lo, i8gj.) 

" Sampson, the strongman, is home again, after 
successful seasons in the old country and at 
Chicago. He was a World's Fair attraction and 
was about the only thing worth seeing at the car- 
nival of sports in the live-stock pavilion on Chicago 
Day. For his fine performance on that occasion 
the World's Fair Athletic Club gave him a hand- 
some gold and diamond medal, one of the finest 
in his collection. His last appearance was at New 
Orleans, where, in addition to his salary at the 



118 STRENGTH. 

theater, he picked up $500 rather easily. J. C. 
Bach, a Crescent City sporting man, said one 
night that Sampson's feats of strength were ex- 
aggerated and, as Sampson happened in the same 
cafe at the time, a warm argument followed. Ac- 
cording to the Picayune^ Mr. Bach said that Samp- 
son could not break a quarter made at the United 
States mint, and that he would wager $500 upon 
his statement. Sampson accepted the proposition, 
and said he would be ready when Mr. Bach called. 
The money was posted, and yesterday was selected 
for the test. Harry McEnerny, 'Bantam,' was 
asked to be stakeholder, and, although he declined, 
he accompanied Sampson to the mint. 

" Mr. Bach and several friends were waiting 
there for the strong man's coming. Few people 
knew of the wager, but those that were told of 
it were eager to see the test, and it created a great 
deal of excitement among the employes in the 
money factory. 

'' Sampson soon announced himself as ready to 

break the money that would be offered. Mr. Bach 

purchased a 25-cent piece and handed it over to 

Mr. McEnerny, who examined the coin on behalf 

. of Sampson. The money was then passed to the 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 119 

latter. Sampson bared his magnificent pair of 
arms and strained to get a grip on the small sur- 
face, sufficient to enable him to use his full 
strength in breaking it. Sampson tugged at the 
coin for a minute, and Mr. Bach seeing the giant 
grow crimson in the face, thought his wager was 
won. Sampson did not release his hold and slowly, 
but surely, the coin was yielding. Two minutes 
elapsed, and the coin was not yet broken. When 
the watch showed that he had been struggling 
two minutes and a half, he began to smile, for the 
coin had started to bend under the pressure of 
those powerful arms; when three nlinutes elapsed, 
the piece gave a snap and Sampson presented the 
broken sections to Mr. Bach and his friends, prov- 
ing to them that his feats were genuine. 

" Sampson then turned to the gentlemen and 
said: ' I will break a half-dollar as a compliment 
to you.' Grasping a bright, new coin of that de- 
nomination, he parted it in less time than his first 
feat. Mr. Bach took his loss good-naturedly, and 
Sampson made the party his guests at supper." 

This concludes the history of my life, which, 
as I said before, I have not narrated because I 



120 STRENGTH. 

think it to be of any special interest or im- 
portance, except in so far as it throws light on 
the methods by which I attained my excep- 
tional muscular power, and shows how my 
system of training has resulted in gaining for 
me the fairly-earned title, " THE STRONG- 
EST MAN ON EARTH." 




LIGHT DUMB-BELL EXERCISE NO. 4. 



CHAPTER III. 

PRELIMINARY INSTRUCTIONS. 

I SHALL now endeavor to place before my 
readers, in as concise and simple a manner 
as possible, the details of my original method 
of developing the muscles and strengthening 
the entire physical system — a method that 
can be carried out without the use of any 
expensive or complicated apparatus, and does 
not necessitate attendance upon athletic 
Schools. 

A "strong-man," in the professional mean- 
ing of the word, is born, not made. Every 
man, unless he is physically incapacitated for 
any effort, can develop a large measure of 
strength by following my instructions ; but, 
on the other hand, every man can not become 
a successful professional strong-man by any 
method, no matter upon what right principles 
it may be based. It is not different in other 

(123) 



124 STRENGTH. 

walks of life. For instance : Anyone can 
attain a certain degree of proficiency in acting 
by constant practice ; but few possess the 
inborn capacity, the natural gifts, that enable 
them to become " star" actors. Alike with the 
strong man and the actor, inherent aptitude, 
in short — genius, is absolutely essential if he 
is to reach the highest eminence in his pro- 
fession. 
I The primary requisites for a strong man 
who would become a strong-man are, that he 
should have head as well as heart; in other 
words, that he should possess the fortitude 
of a Spartan, pluck to endure punishment, 
endless patience, extraordinary endurance, and 
unbending will-power, all of which endow- 
ments, though they can be developed to 
some extent, are inborn qualities that can 
not be wholly, or, indeed, in any very large 
measure, acquired. But above and beyond 
all these attributes it is necessary that he 
should be possessed of that spark called 
" genius," which alone empowers him to put 
to their full use these primary requisites. 



PRELIMINARY INSTRUCTIONS. 125 

If a man be sound in wind and limb ; if 
his heart, lungs, and kidneys are not organ- 
ically impaired, by [following my instructions 
he can' harden his muscles, strengthen his 
heart, and develop his lungs to an extent 
that will surprise him, and enable him to 
endure for hours exertions that, without such 
training, it would be absolutely impossible 
for him to stand; or, if he did accomplish 
them, would lead to perilous or fatal exhaus- 
tion. I wish, however, to state here, once 
for all, that if any of the important organs of 
the body are organically diseased, although 
a man can not fail to be more or less bene- 
fited by the course of training I am about 
to suggest, he can not hope to gain any extra- 
ordinary degree of strength by this or by 
any other system. A strong heart to force 
blood through tense muscles, powerful lungs 
to thoroughly oxidize the blood on its return 
trip to the heart, and healthy kidneys, are all 
absolute necessities to him who would excel 
in feats of strength. 

The strong-man profession has made rapid 



126 STRENGTH. 

strides within the last few years, and I think I 
may say, without undue egotism, that the 
records I have set have had no little to do 
with the advancement ; for they have caused 
many aspirants to emulate my feats. What 
were considered great performances a decade 
ago, have since been so far surpassed by myself 
and others that they would to-day be laughed at. 

My success has been largely due to the more 
rational and natural system of training that I 
gradually learned and perfected throughout 
a long experience ; indeed there is as great a 
difference between the methods I now pursue 
and advise and those followed when I first 
entered the profession, as there is between the 
feats of to-day and those that were considered 
great ten years ago. On pages 19, 23, and 29 
the exact reproductions of three photographs 
of myself, taken in Chicago during February, 
1895, give a fair idea of the development of my 
muscles under the system I follow and teach. 

The following measurements of myself^ 
taken at the time, will aid the better compre- 
hension of the illustrations : 



PRELIMINARY INSTRUCTIONS. 129 

Neck 17 inches. 

Chest (contracted) 39 inches. 

Chest (normal) ..43 inches. 

Chest (expanded) 58 inches. 

Biceps 19 inches. 

Wrist ■- . . 4^ inches. 

Forearm 163^ inches. 

Calf .16 inches. 

Thigh 26^ inches. 

Height 5 feet 7 inches. 

Weight - .- 175 pounds. 

It is well to remember that to develop mus- 
cular power, and what is of equal importance, 
to learn how to use one's strength, can not possi- 
bly hurt anyone, old or young-. In particular 
every boy should be taught early how to 
develop his muscles and how to employ them. 
The possession of the strength and knowledge 
thus acquired, will make him healthier, more 
self-reliant and manly, and furnish him a solid 
foundation upon which to build during the 
rest of his life. Should a youth excel in lifting 
great weights and performing other feats of 



130 STRENGTH. 

strength and endurance, it is by no means neces- 
sary that he should become a professional 
strong-man; he will be in the happy position, 
however, where he can always defend himself 
and possibly at times protect others. The 
possession of strength and endurance, and 
their almost universal accompaniment, cour- 
age, far from inciting their possessor to deeds 
of violence, develops a buoyant relf-reliance 
that inclines to good-natured peacefulness. 
The cowardly knife or pistol has never been 
the weapon of the strong-man. He glories too 
greatly in his own powers to descend to such 
methods of defense. 

As well as developing muscular strength, 
and teaching how it may be fully utilized, 
I find that my method unfailingly improves 
the health of the delicate and maintains that 
of the robust. When its details are studied 
it will be found that I do not advise violent 
exercise, which, especially in the case of un- 
trained persons, is apt to prove highly injuri- 
ous. Daily light exercise, increased reason- 
ably as muscular development progresses, 



PRELIMINARY INSTRUCTIONS. 133 

produces much better and more lasting results 
than intermittent, severe effort. 

The majority of prize fighters and profes- 
sional wrestlers go through a course of ex- 
treme exercise, pushed almost to the limit of 
endurance, for a few weeks, to prepare them- 
selves for a contest that may only last a few 
minutes, or at most will be counted by hours, 
after which they usually cease training and 
live inactive lives until called upon to fit 
themselves for the next contest. 

All this is entirely against common sense, 
and opposed to hygienic laws. It would be as 
rational to stay in bed for weeks and allow the 
muscles, nerves, heart, and lungs to lose tone 
and become flaccid, and then suddenly jump 
up and go through violent and exhausting 
exercise. The result probably would be, if 
disaster did not immediately occur, to sow 
seeds of diseases which would blossom later 
into fatal heart failure. Professional strong- 
men never build up their strength by such vio- 
lent methods, and, as a result, many hale and 
hearty old men can be found who once were 



134 STRENGTH. 

of that profession ; but to how many aged 
prize fighters can one point? 

Exercise carried to the point of exhaustion 
I am entirely opposed to ; on tlie contrary, the 
aim of my method is to develop and strengthen 
the body with a minimum of exertion and 
absolutely no straining, in a manner that Avill 
result in a lifetime of vigorous bodily health, 
associated with no less vigorous mental force. 
Indeed, the latter endowment is so dependent 
upon the former, that the full use of intel- 
lectual power is impossible to one handicapped 
by a feeble body. My system, therefore, in 
a sense, aims to develop brain as well as body. 



CHAPTER IV. 

HYGIENE. 

The hygiene of my system is not onerous. 
.1 do not advise any special course of diet; 
the same intelligent temperance in eating 
and drinking that is necessary to the perfect 
use of mental or bodily faculties in, every 
walk of life, is all that is necessary to obtain 
the best results from my system. A few 
general rules based on common sense may, 
however, be laid down. 

For those who have a tendency to corpu- 
lence, it is advisable to eat as little butter 
and fatty substances as possible, or foods 
containing a large proportion of starch — 
such, for instance, as potatoes and most vege- 
tables "; but they need not fear to eat meat 
(with as little fat as possible), nor eggs, in 
ordinary moderation, nor bread, which, though 
containing much starch, is the least fattening 
of such foods. For those, on the contrary, 

(135) 



136 STRENGTH, 

who are inclined to be thin, starch and fats 
are advisable. Pies and such trash are equally 
poisonous to every class of person that seeks 
to acquire strength. The severe course of 
purging that used to b^ recommended by 
athletic instructors as an introduction to train- 
ing I believe to be worse than useless. 

Since recovering from the effects of the 
lightning stroke mentioned in my autobiog- 
raphy, I never suffered a day's sickness, 
except when it has been brought on by some 
such accident as the sword-cut inflicted on 
me at Strasburg. I know, therefore, very 
little about drugs, and find the exercise I 
take keeps me in perfect health, and I can 
promise those who follow my system that 
within a short time they can throw away all 
doctor's prescriptions, medicine bottles, and 
pill boxes. The only thing in the nature 
of a drug that I have taken in years is sar- 
saparilla. This natural blood-purifier I find 
beneficial in spring and autumn — seasons 
when one is apt to be a little out of sorts — 
and, also, at times when, for some reason or 



HYGIENE. 137 

other, I have been cut off from my usual 
allowance of exercise. A few days of idle- 
ness always make me listless, and when the 
opportunity for exercise again presents itself 
I feel disinclined t6 begin. I then take a 
few doses of sarsaparilla, which soon frees 
me from lassitude. Receipts for making a 
decoction of this root can easily be obtained, 
or the ready-made extract manufactured by 
druggists will be found equally efficacious. 

I am now about to tread on dangerous 
ground by speaking of the use of tobacco and 
spirituous liquors. Tobacco in any form, with- 
out doubt, is injurious to him who would excel 
in feats of strength. Nicotine, either volatil- 
ized and absorbed as smoke, or taken into the 
system through the chewing of tobacco, is a dis- 
tinct heart depressant, and the folly of depriv- 
ing the heart of any of its force is apparent 
when the following facts are considered: 

When a muscle is being exerted, the tissue 
it is composed of becomes rigidly compressed, 
and it takes the unimpaired power of the heart 
to force the blood through the constricted veins 



138 STRENGTH. 

and arteries of that muscle in sufficient quan- 
tities. As has been before stated, it is a physi- 
ological fact that when any organ or muscle 
is brought into action an increased supply 
of blood is immediately required by it, the 
increase being proportionate to the severity 
of the work performed by the organ or muscle 
in question. If, for instance, the biceps are 
brought into active play, a fuller circulation of 
blood through them is an absolute necessity if 
they are to perform their function properly. 
During exercise, therefore, the heart is not 
only called upon to pump a fuller supply of 
blood, but it is also required to drive it 
through veins and arteries contracted by 
tensed muscles. In short, when muscles are 
being exerted the heart is called upon to do 
not only more, but harder work. The folly of 
the use of tobacco, or any other substance that 
tends to weaken the heart's power, by those 
who aim to perform feats of strength, is 
therefore at once apparent. 

Another injurious feature of the tobacco 
habit is the frequent expectoration of saliva, 




HEAVY CKJMB-BELL EXERCISE — READY. 



HYGIENE. 141 

habitual with so many smokers, and all chew- 
ers. Saliva is provided by nature as a sol- 
vent to promote the digestion of food, and the 
result of spitting- it away is either that the 
food is imperfectly digested from a lack of 
it, or that an increased supply is manufactured 
to make the loss good — an extra tax being 
imposed on the system in both cases. In 
either event muscular development is retarded 
and vitality is sapped. I know it is useless to 
expect, except in very few instances, the 
entire abandonment of the fragrant weed, 
but I wish to impress upon my readers, as 
strongly as possible, the advisability of not 
smoking for at least half an hour before, 
during, or half an hour after exercise. Such 
abstinence does not call for any great amount 
of self-sacrifice, and the resulting benefit 
will far more than compensate for the 
deprivation. 

What I have advised as to eating applies 
equally to drinking: be moderate. I realize 
that the question of alcoholic liquors is even 
a more ticklish one than tobacco to touch 



142 STRENGTH. 

upon, and that no matter what I counsel, I 
am bound to "wound the susceptibilities of 
some. I shall, however, state my opinion — 
which is entirely unprejudiced and based on 
experience — without fear or favor. It must 
be remembered, however, that w^hat I have 
to say regarding the matter applies only to 
those who put themselves under my athletic 
tuition, and to no others. 

To those inclined to corpulence, beer is 
distinctly detrimental, whilst the light, white 
wines of Germany appear to be harmless, and 
are, in many cases, highly beneficial. With 
most people these wines aid digestion and 
promote assimilation, and anything that fur- 
thers these important functions unquestion- 
ably cooperates with exercise in the develop- 
ment of muscle. 

To those who do not acquire flesh readily, 
a little beer is not detrimental if it is easily 
digested, and both the white and red wines 
of France and Germany are usually advan- 
tageous. There are, of course, many persons 
so constituted that they should leave alcoholic 



HYGIENE. 143 

beverages of every kind severely alone — those 
disposed to gout, for instance. - 

Spirits and water, instead of wines or beer, 
are preferred by some people, and apparently 
suit them better. There is no reason, as far 
as muscle development is concerned, why they 
should not indulge their taste in moderation. 

In all cases I strongly deprecate the use of 
stimulants between meals, and advise their use 
only whilst eating. 

Over-indulgence in any form of alcoholic 
drink is fatal to the acquirement of sound 
muscle or the performance of feats of strength. 
The artificial stimulation of the heart's action 
caused by such excess is followed by a severe 
depression, which is accompanied by all the ill 
effects, greatly accentuated, described as result- 
ing from the use of tobacco ; and this is but 
one of the innumerable injurious consequences 
that are sure to follow intemperance in this 
direction. 

It is, perhaps, superfluous to add that it is 
of the first importance that all liquors should 
be pure and of the best quality. New or 



144 STRENGTH. 

adulterated wines, spirits, or beer are poisons 
to the athlete. 

A cold bath or sponge-down, followed by a 
smart rubbing with a rough towel, will be 
found of the greatest service after exercise. 
The benefit resulting from this practice is two- 
fold. In the first place, the slight shock caused 
by the sudden application of cold water to the 
skin is followed, in the healthy, by a reaction 
that is invigorating and tonic; and secondly, 
the pores of the skin are kept open and in. free 
working order. The importance of this latter 
result is evident when the following facts are 
considered. 

The blood is continually building up new 
muscle-tissue, the old breaking down and 
being carried off by the special organs which 
nature has provided for that purpose. If the 
first of these functions — tissue building — is 
retarded, in so much will the development of 
muscle be diminished ; hence, the necessity 
for a full supply of the rich blood which is 
m.anufactured from appropriate food, prepared 
by a healthy digestion. But what is of fully 




HEAVY DUMB-BELL EXERCISE NO. 1. 



HYGIENE. 147 

equal moment is to keep the organs that carry 
off the broken-down muscle-tissue in full and 
unimpeded working order. One of the chief 
means by which the body rids itself of this 
debris — which soon decomposes and becomes 
poisonous if not regularly excreted — is by 
casting it out through the pores, which are 
nature's drains. Nothing is more certain than 
that if broken-down tissue is not quickly and 
entirely expelled impaired health will result. 
This fact is powerfully exemplified during an 
attack of fever, when more tissue is broken 
down than can at once be carried off, the 
undischarged excess decomposing and caus- 
ing blood poisoning, and possibly death. 

One of the effects of exercising a muscle is 
to break down its tissue with increased 
rapidity. Hence, for those who exercise their 
muscles there exists a double necessity for pre- 
caution, lest the channels which are intended 
to carry away the poisonous, broken-down 
muscle-tissue should become clogged or inac- 
tive. Nothing is better than the cold bath, 
followed by vigorous rubbing, to keep the 



148 STRENGTH. 

pores unimpeded and in good working order. 
By those unfortunately-constituted people who, 
because of a weak power of reaction, can 
not stand the delightful shock of cold water, 
tepid water can be used, the temperature of it 
being gradually lessened from time to time, 
until at length entirely cold water very likely 
can be borne. 



CHAPTER V. 

TRAINING WITHOUT APPARATUS. 

Walking is an excellent adjunct to the 
special course of exercises I advise hereafter, 
and is particularly beneficial to business men 
who lead a more or less sedentary life. 

As with every other form of activity, walk- 
ing should be practiced in moderation. How 
long a distance constitutes moderation is easily 
learned from nature, for immediately weari- 
ness is experienced the limit of safety has 
been reached. Tiredness precedes exhaustion, 
and is in the nature of a warning that that 
danger point is being approached. Be satis- 
fied to begin with a mile or two miles a day 
if a longer distance fatigues. 

During the walk practice inflating the chest 
to the utmost extent and then driving out the 
air till not an atom is retained in the lungs. 
This is a most excellent exercise, which not 
only develops the lungs and the muscles of 

(149) 



150 STRENGTH. 

the chest to a wonderful extent, but also 
thoroughly oxidizes and purifies the blood, 
and drives out poisonous remnants of carbonic 
acid gas that are apt to linger with ill-effect 
in unused corners of the lungs. The feeling 
of vigorous exhilaration that follows half an 
hour of this practice is delightful. 

It is an instructive lesson in this connection 
to measure the circumference of the chest 
before beginning a course of this exercise. 
Run the tape around the chest when it is at its 
natural middle expansion; again when it is 
fully inflated, and a third time when con- 
tracted by complete exhalation. A month 
later repeat the measurements, and compare 
the figures then obtained, with those first 
noted. It will be found that the chest, even 
in that short time, has increased in girth, and 
that there is a greater difference between the 
contracted and expanded measurements than 
formerly. This habit of deep breathing, with 
all its attendant benefits, will before long 
become second nature to those who practice 
it as I advise. 




HEAVY DUMB-BELL EXERCISE NO. 1. 



TRAINING WITHOUT APPARATUS. 153 

Extreme inhalation and exhalation should 
not be practiced in ill-ventilated rooms, nor 
in places where many people are gathered 
together, and where, therefore, the air is 
sure to be more or less vitiated. Keep this 
exercise for out-of-doors and, best of all, 
practice it whilst walking, but never when 
smoking. A slight soreness of the muscles 
of the chest may at first be caused from their 
unaccustomed stretching, but this will soon 
pass away, and is of no importance. 

If business men would make a habit of 
thus breathing, and of walking a part of or 
all the way to their offices in the morning, 
instead of riding, they would find their heads 
clearer during the day, and be less liable to 
fatigue from' severe brain work, and by repeat- 
ing the performance when going home, an 
appetite for dinner (or whatever the evening 
meal may be) would be created, recalling the 
happy, hungry days of youth. 

The proper way to perform this breathing 
exercise is to draw a long, slow breath, throw- 
ing the shoulders slightly back and inflating 



154 STRENGTH. 

the lungs until one nearly lifts himself off 
his feet, and it becomes an absolute impossi- 
bility to inhale another atom of air or to 
distend the ribs a hair's-breadth farther. 
Retain the air thus drawn in for two or three 
seconds, then slowly expel it and contract 
the chest until it feels as if the breastbone 
were touching the spine ; in fact, squeeze out 
the lungs until they are absolutely empty of 
air; then slowly inhale again, and keep on 
repeating the performance ad infinitum. This 
grows to be a favorite exercise with every one 
who gives it a fair trial. 

It should be observed as an invariable rule 
not to actively exercise for an hour or two 
after eating. During the process of digestion 
an extra allowance of blood is called for by 
the stomach, and it is detrimental to draw it 
away from that organ and impair its action, as 
would be done if muscles in other parts of the 
body were actively exercised. It is nearly or 
quite as dangerous, however, to exercise when 
hungry or faint, or when more than five or six 
hours have elapsed since a meal. When any 



TRAINING WITHOUT APPARATUS. 155 

of these latter, conditions exist and I am obliged 
to exert myself, I take a cup of broth made 
from some beef extract. This is absorbed and 
assimilated almost immediately, its invigor- 
ating and nourishing influence being at once 
felt. After prolonged exertions, also, I re- 
cuperate myself in the same way. Some- 
times after a protracted performance, when 
the audience has insisted on the repetition of 
feats that, even when done once, call for the 
use of my utmost strength, naturally I am 
fatigued, more or less, and feel the want of 
some readily assimilable nutriment. From 
time to time I have tested the efficacy of tea, 
coffee, and alcoholic beverages for this purpose, 
but now have discarded them all as inefficient, 
using in their stead one of the many concen- 
trated extracts of beef which are now to be 
found on the market. The broth can be pre- 
pared at a. moment's notice, which is an impor- 
tant consideration, by simply putting a tea- 
spoonful of the extract in a cup of hot water 
and stirring it for half a minute. I now use 
it just before and, when there is a break in 



156 STRENGTH. 

the programme, during the exhibition, as well 
as afterward. 

I have before warned my readers against 
exercising to the point of exhaustion, but 
should they ever unwittingly do so, they will 
minimize the evil effect as far as possible by 
the use of some such preparation as this, which, 
in such cases, is far preferable to the alcoholic 
stimulants that formerly were considered the 
proper restoratives. Even when exertion has 
not been carried to the point of exhaustion, but 
one feels healthily tired, it will be found bene- 
ficial to take a cup of beef extract, for when 
tissue has been rapidly broken down — as it is 
when muscles are actively used — the system 
is in a peculiarly fitted condition to absorb 
nutriment and build up strong new tissue in 
place of that which has been lost. Some food 
that is quickly assimilable is then called for, if 
full advantage is to be taken of the oppor- 
tunity. 




HEAVY DUMB-BELL EXERCISE NO. 1. 



CHAPTER VI. 

SPECIFIC EXERCISES. 

I SHALL now proceed to give instructions 
regarding the_ use of the few apparatus requi- 
site to carry out my system fully. 

The appliances necessary are rings, dumb- 
bells, and a Roman column, the last mentioned 
not being absolutely essential, as will be 
explained later on. 

The Use of Rings. 

The value of rings as apparatus for muscle 
development was discovered accidentally by 
me during my childhood, whilst lying ill in bed, 
as narrated in the pages giving an account of 
my life. From that time — now so many years 
ago that I hardly like to number them — until 
to-day, I have never ceased using these great 
promoters of strength and health, my faith in 
them ever increasing as I witness fresh evi- 
dences of their value. 

(169) 



160 . STRENGTH, 

The prime object of the ring is to compress 
the muscles which it encircles, and thus to 
automatically massage them whenever move- 
ment of the part takes place. How effectually 
this is done can be learned by firmly grasping 
the arm around the biceps and then raising 
and lowering the forearm. The biceps will 
be found to change in shape with every 
angle of motion^ so that when they are con- 
stantly grasped, as they are when the ring is 
worn, continuous and thorough massage of the 
part is effected by the multifarious use to 
which the arm is put during the day. 

The great benefit of massage in limbering 
muscles stiffened by disuse or disease is now 
fully recognized by physicians and advanced 
professors of physical training, and my experi- 
ence has led me to the conclusion that it is 
certainly no less useful to muscles possessing 
their full vigor. A few minutes' consideration 
of the subject will show it is but natural that 
this should be the case. 

It has been explained before that muscle- 
tissue, after it has reached its age of useful- 



SPECIFIC EXERCISES. 161 

ness, breaks down and is carried off by the 
excretory organs, and that new tissue is built 
up in its place, made of substances taken from 
the blood during its circulation ; and, also, that, 
if a muscle be used insufficiently, the old tissue 
does not break down and give place to young 
tissue with sufficient rapidity, the result being 
loss of vigor in proportion to the amount of 
old material retained. 

The vegetable kingdom presents a parallel 
to this physiological fact. An old bough of an 
apple-tree, as age impairs its function, pro- 
duces less and less fruit. Should the winds of 
winter spare it, or the pruning-saw be not 
applied, it soon ceases to bear altogether, and 
eventually dies of senile decay — the poison 
distilled within itself more than likely infect- 
ing other parts of the tree and causing its 
entire destruction. If, when the symptoms of 
old age first appeared, the bough had been cut 
off, fresh young branches would have grown 
in its place, that would have borne as fruit- 
fully as the discarded bough in the time of its 

vigorous youth. The intelligent orchardist, 
11 



162 STRENGTH. 

however, goes farther than merely removing 
dying boughs, and cuts off branches before 
they reach the age of diminished productive 
power, precisely in the same manner as one 
who would be vigorous and healthy should 
break down and eliminate muscle-tissue before 
it has reached the stage of unusefulness. For 
just as a -tree is strengthened and its growth 
accelerated by the cutting off of youthful 
branches, so is muscle strengthened and more 
rapidly formed by the breaking down and car- 
rying away of tissue that is yet vigorous. 
That rapid breaking down of tissue leads to an 
even more rapid up-building is evident from 
the fact that, up to a reasonable limit, the 
exercises of a muscle increases both its size 
and its density. 

It is well, therefore, to bear in mind the 
facts that non-exercise of a muscle permits the 
retention in it of old tissue that should be dis- 
integrated and carried off ; that insufficient 
exercise removes senile tissue only, and that 
adequate exercise breaks down and removes, 
in addition to all the worn-out tissue, some 




HEAVY DUMB-BELL EXERCISE NO. I. 



SPECIFIC EXERCISES. 165 

which has not yet reached the stage of unuse- 
fulness, and so stimulates the muscle that it 
absorbs from the blood not only enough nutri- 
ment to make up for what it lost, but to add to 
its size and density. 

Unceasing exercise, of sufficiently active 
character to be of appreciable service — benefi- 
cial as it would be to muscular development — is 
of course out of the question, and, even if it were 
practicable, would call for such a continuous 
expenditure of nerve force as to be exhausting 
and injurious to the system as a whole, and do 
more harm than good. But no such impossi- 
bility or disadvantage attaches to continuous 
massage, zvJiicJi performs all the functions of 
exercise without calling for expenditure of nerve 
force. This fact explains in a nut-shell the 
advantages attached' to the use of rings. They 
provide all the benefits that would attend con- 
tinuous exercise without any of its accompany- 
ing evils. Their usefulness is so apparent, and 
their application so simple, that it is quite 
remarkable they have never been advised 
before. 



166 STRENGTH. 

As generally illustrative of how the ring 
should be employed, I shall explain its applica- 
tion to the biceps and triceps. 

When first used, the ring should be of rub- 
ber, of such size and strength that it will grasp 
the arm in the position indicated in illustration, 
page 40, with sufficient pressure to slightly 
impede the circulation of the blood. For those 
with medium-sized biceps and triceps, and aver- 
age heart-power, what is known by stationers 
as rubber-band No. cxx)0 }{ will be found about 
right to begin with. For a day or so after it 
is first used a little numbness or prickling may 
be felt in the hands or fingers, and some incon- 
venience be caused thereby. If the sensation 
is more than slight, or does not pass away 
within a couple of days, it is a sign that the 
ring is too small or too strong, and that it 
should be replaced by a larger or weaker one. 
Within two or three weeks the circulation will 
have overcome the obstruction the compres- 
sion causes, by cleaning out and enlarging 
numerous small veins, leading throus^h the 
biceps and triceps, that hitherto had been but 



SPECIFIC EXERCISES. 167 

little used, and thus early in the course these 
muscles will be provided with a more generally 
distributed blood supply, enabling them to 
more easily absorb nutrient matter. 

At first the band should not be worn at 
night, but after a few days its use should be 
continuous, and will not then be found dis- 
tressing. 

When two weeks or so have passed, and 
the rings have ceased to cause any incon- 
venience, they should be exchanged for others 
that exert a somewhat greater pressure, and 
when, in time, these entirely cease to be felt, 
still stronger and smaller' ones should take 
their place, but never should they squeeze so 
as to cause permanent annoyance. When 
this stage of tolerance is reached, a section 
of a pneumatic bicycle tire, an inch long, 
should be obtained and worn for a few 
minutes each day, the forearm during the 
time being worked up and down, the fist 
tightly shut, and the muscles straining against 
the pressure to the utmost. To get this last- 
mentioned ring to its proper position, the aid 



168 STRENGTH. 

of an assistant is required to stretch, it and 
slip it up the arm and gradually release it 
around the biceps. At first the pressure will 
be found to be extreme, but after a few days 
it can easily be borne for two or three minutes 
at a time, which is all that is required for the 
best results. Rings should be worn during 
the dumb-bell exercises hereafter taught, and 
when dumb-bells are not at hand the same 
motions should be gone through without them, 
with the fists tightly clinched. 

When these practices have been persevered 
in for a few months, the pupil is prepared for 
the more severe form of pressure exerted 
by a steel ring. This ring should be a 
circle of ^-inch steel, of such size that it 
closely fits. the biceps when the arm is straight- 
ened out. Whe'n it is placed in position, clinch 
the fist tightly and slowly bend the arm at 
the elbow, raising the forearm until the pres- 
sure of the swelling biceps against the ring 
prevents further reduction of the angle ; then 
straighten out the arm again and repeat the 
performance for two or three minutes. Within 




HEAVY DUMB-BELL EXERCISE NO. 1 —TWO-HANDED LIFT. 



SPFXIFIC EXERCISES. 171 

a few weeks the biceps will have so hardened 
and strengthened that a chain or rope, capa- 
ble of withstanding a strain of 200 pounds, 
closely fitted around them, can be burst by 
the slow, forceful elevation of the forearm ; 
and before much longer the power to force 
the steel ring out of shape will be attained. 
When this is accomplished the performer 
may rest assured that he has biceps endowed 
with a strength possessed by few men in the 
world who have not developed it by this 
system. I, have myself burst a chain in this 
manner that withstood a strain of over ten 
thousand pounds, which may seem an extraor- 
dinary statement, but is nevertheless true, 
as many witnesses can testify. 

Some persons are so proportioned as never 
to be able to slip a steel ring of the right cir- 
cumference to the biceps, because of .the 
greater, size of the forearm.. Such people 
must rest content with the use of the pneu- 
matic tire ring already spoken of, which can 
be placed in position on all persons by an 
assistant. 



172 STRENGTH. 

If the skin be tender, a little vaseline 
applied to the inside of the rings will prevent 
abrasion. After all the severer exercises the 
muscles that have been encircled should be 
bathed in cold water. 

The muscles of the thigh should be treated 
in exactly the same way as the biceps, except, 
of course^ that a section of pneumatic bicycle 
tire is too small to be used. Specially-made 
rings that exert about the same pressure 
should be procured for the purpose. To mas- 
sage thoroughly the several muscles com- 
pressed by the thigh rings, the dumb-bell 
exercises should be gone through whilst 
wearing them. 

A strap tightly buckled around the chest, 
when it is at a little less than its normal 
expansion, operates on the muscles that gov- 
ern the breathing apparatus in precisely the 
same manner as a ring does on the biceps. 
This strap should be used for a few minutes 
every day, the lungs at every breath being 
expanded to the utmost to overcome its pres- 
sure. The resistance it offers to the muscles 



SPECIFIC EXERCISES. 173 

that inflate the chest develops them to an 
extraordinary degree, and before long an 
ordinary strap, and eventually a quarter-inch 
wire rope, can be burst asunder by the highly 
developed power of expansion. No exercises 
that I know of so beneficially affects the gen- 
eral system. Deep breathing becomes easy 
and natural, and the risk of acquiring lung 
affections is reduced to a minimum. 



CHAPTER VII. 

LIGHT DUMB-BELL EXERCISES. 

The light dumb-bell exercises I advise are 
simple and only six in number. 

They should be performed whilst wearing 
the rubber rings already spoken of around the 
upper arm and thigh, of a strength and size 
that cause as great pressure as can be borne 
without inconvenience. 

For a beginner the dumb-bells should not 
weigh more than two or, at most, three pounds 
each ; but as time goes on, and the muscles 
harden and develop, their weight should be 
gradually increased until, at length, those 
weighing ten or twenty pounds apiece can be 
handled as easily as the light ones were at 
first. 

The right weight of the dumb-bells to be 
used can be ascertained easily in the following 
manner: On the first occasion that the two or 

(174) 




HEAVY DUMB-BELL EXERCISE NO. 2. 



LIGHT DUMB-BELL EXERCISES. 177 

three pound dumb-bells are used, note how 
many times Exercise No. i is performed before 
the muscles ache to the degree that calls for 
rest. A month later perform the same exer- 
• cise with bells a pound or two heavier. If the 
same number of motions can then be gone 
through with the heavier bells, by the time the 
stopping degree of ache is reached, as were 
performed at first with the lighter ones, the 
new bells are not too weighty; whilst, on the 
contrary, if the muscles ache to the stopping 
degree after fewer motions than were gone 
through at first, it is an indication that the 
additional weight is too great. 

For instance: If Exercise No. i was gone 
through ten times on the first occasion the 
lightest dumb-bells were used, and can be per- 
formed the same number of times, with equal 
ease, on the first trial with the heavier bells, 
the increase of weight is not excessive or pre- 
mature; but, if ten motions with the heavier 
bells cause a greater degree of ache than was 
experienced by ten motions with the lighter 
dumb-bells on the first trial, it is evident that 

12 



178 STRENGTH. 

the proper time has not yet arrived for increase 
of weight, and that a few weeks more of exer- 
cise with the lightest ones is called for, after 
which time the test can be made again. 

For persons in all ordinary walks of life 
dumb-bells of twenty pounds each are the 
heaviest that ever should be used. Of course, 
for those who are in training for professional 
exhibitions much heavier ones must be prac- 
ticed with, but never should their combined 
weight exceed that of the performer. 

I would here, once again, impress upon my 
readers the fact that any exercise which 
severely strains, or that is carried to the point 
of exhaustion, is worse than useless. Do not 
use dumb-bells that can not be handled, if not 
with ease, at least without extreme exertion. 

For those who are naturally of a weak 
constitution, or who are temporarily ener- 
vated by sickness, if the two-pound dumb- 
bells are exhausting, let them go through the 
motions with those that weigh one pound, or 
even with nothing whatever in the hands, 
until the muscles develop somewhat; and, fur- 



LIGHT DUMB-BELL ■ EXERCISES. 179 

ther, if ten minutes' exercise exhausts, cut 
down the time to five minutes, or two min- 
utes — a period that can be gradually length- 
ened as the muscles strengthen. 

For most persons half an hour's practice 
each day is all that is required, and this time 
is best divided into tw^o terms of fifteen min- 
utes each, preferably ju.st before retiring and 
on rising in the morning. 

The exercises should be gone through in 
light, loose clothing, or in underclothing alone. 
These latter garments are convenient when 
the admirable practice of exercising before 
going to bed is followed. Neither belt nor 
suspenders should be worn to sustain the 
trousers, which should be so made as to stay 
in place by merely being buttoned. If these 
exercises are performed in a bedroom, or 
other inclosed space, it is of the first impor- 
tance that there should be free ventilation 
and fresh air. It is worse than useless to 
exercise in a vitiated atmosphere, such as is 
sure to exist in a badly ventilated bedroom 
that has been slept in all night. 



180 STRENGTH. 

As mentioned under caption Hygiene, a 
cold or tepid bath and brisk rubbing should 
follow these exercises. 




HEAVy DUMB-BELL EXERCISE NO. 2. 



LIGHT DUMB-BELL EXERCISES. 183 



Exercise No. i. 

Stand upright; shoulders thrown well back; 
back straight; stomach not protruding; heels 
touching, the weight of the body resting more 
on them than on the toes; feet forming a right 
angle (or one a little less); dumb-bells lying on 
the ground parallel, and close to, outside of 
each foot. (See illustration, page 53.) 

Stoop down and firmly grasp the dumb-bells 
without bendmg the knees. (See illustration, page 
59.) Straighten up the body to previous posi- 
tion ; bend the arms at the elbows and bring 
the dumb-bells up to the front of and on 
a level with the shoulders, the backs of the 
hands outward, palms facing, dumb-bells par- 
allel, inside of upper arms touching sides of the 
chest (see illustration, page 64), forearms press- 
ing against the biceps as tightly as possible. 
This attitude is called "first position," and will 
be referred to as such afterward. (For some 
persons it is a difficult or impossible thing 
at first' to pick up the dumb-bells without 



184 STRENGTH. 

bending the knees, and for a few days 
it may be necessary to flex them slightly 
before the dumb-bells can be grasped. If, 
however, the practice is persevered in, with 
a full determination to succeed, the muscles 
of the legs and back will, before long, become 
so limbered that the feat can be performed 
with ease by the corpulent as well as by the 
slender,) 

Straighten out right arm to its fullest extent 
in line with the shoulders, the dumb-bell not 
being allowed to fall below the level of the 
shoulder. (See illustration, page 72.) Proceed 
in like manner with the left arm, and, as it is 
being extended, flex the right arm at the elbow 
and bring the dumb-bell back to a point im- 
mediately over the right shoulder. (See illus- 
tration, page 78.) Bend the left arm in the same 
manner whilst again straightening the right, 
one arm coming in as the other goes out; repeat 
this rotation until the muscles ache. During 
this exercise the inside of the forearm should 
face upward. Look always at the dumb-bell 
that is being extended; the turning motion 



LIGHT DUMB-BELL EXERCISES. 185 

thus given to the head limbers and develops 
the muscles of the neck. Breathe as deeply as 
possible. Perform the exercise quite slowly, 
spending a little more than a second on each 
motion. 

This exercise develops the muscles of the 
wrist, forearm, upper arm, and shoulders, 
besides those of the neck. 



186 STRENGTH. 



Exercise No. 2. 

Bring dumb-bells to first position (see illus- 
tration, page 64); elevate the right dumb-bell 
straight up to the extreme limit (see illustra- 
tion, page 85) ; then lower to the first position, 
and whilst doing so elevate the left dumb-bell 
(see illustration, page 91) so that as one arm 
goes up the other comes down. Look at each 
dumb-bell as it ascends. Speed should be 
similar to that directed for the last exercise. 
The body should be erect, the shoulders thrown 
well back, feet as before, the breathing deep. 

The muscles exercised are all those used 
in Exercise No. i, besides those of the back 
and chest. 




LONG BAR DUMB-BELL EXERCISE NO. 1, 



LIGHT DUMB-BELL EXERCISES. 189 



Exercise No. 3. 

Touch the ends of the dumb-bells, the arms 
being extended to their utmost, straight above 
the head. Describe an arc of ninety degrees 
by swinging the bells forward and downward, 
stopping them in front of the chest, the ends 
still touching, the arms stiff at right angles 
to the body, parallel to the floor, the back 
af the hands remaining upward (see illus- 
tration, page 97). Swing both arms slowly 
backward, on the same level, until they 
form one straight line broken in the center 
by the body, at the same time turning the 
hands so that the palms will face upward 
when this position is reached. (See illustra- 
tion, page 103.) 

From this position swing the arms slowly 
backward and downward, turning the wrists so 
that the hands will be back to back, when the 
extreme possibility of the backward motion of 
the arms is reached (see illustration, page 109); 
then bring back the dumb-bells to their posi- 



190 STRENGTH. 

tion over the head, as at the beginning of the 
exercise, the return motions being exactly- 
similar to those just gone through, but in 
reversed rotation. Position of body and feet 
same as that for Exercise No. i ; breathing 
slow and deep. 

All the muscles already mentioned are 
strengthened by this exercise, especially those 
of the back and shoulders. This is a trying 
exercise to beginners, and should be practiced 
in moderation at first. 



LIGHT DUMB-BELL EXERCISES. 191 



Exercise No. 4. 

Bring dumb-bells to " first position," heels 
together ; feet at an angle of about ninety 
degrees ; weight of body resting on toes. 
(See illustration, page 115.) Bend knees and 
slowly bring down buttock to as near the 
heels as possible, keeping back straight, 
knees apart (see illustration, page 121). Rise 
again slowly until perfectly erect, repeat the 
alternate rising and lowering very slowly; 
and finally, while squatting, go through all the 
exercises already performed. 

As well as strengthening the muscles acted 
on by these motions when performed stand- 
ing, those of the thigh, calves, and loins are 
vigorously brought into play and developed 
by this exercise. 



192 STRENGTH. 



Exercise No. 5. 

Lie flat on the back and bring dumb-bells- to 
first position. (See illustration, page 126.) Go 
through the first two movements of Exercise 
No. 3. 

This exercise particularly strengthens the 
muscles of the chest, shoulders, and stomach, 
as well as those of the arms and back. 




LONG BAR DUMB-BELL EXERCISE NO. 1. 



LIGHT DUMB-BELL EXERCISES. 195 



Exercise No. 6. 

While lying on the back bring dumb-bells 
to the first position and then rise to a sitting 
posture without raising the feet or legs from, 
the floor, keeping the back straight (see illus- 
tration, page 132). Repeat this motion several 
times. 

This, at first, is a difficult feat to per- 
form, and it may be necessary to pass the 
ankles under straps, fastened at both ends to 
the floor, against which pressure can be exerted 
to keep the feet from rising. Possibly some 
heavy piece of furniture, such as a bureau, ele- 
vated a few inches from the floor, may afford 
facilities that will obviate the necessity of using 
straps. When in a sitting posture go through 
exercises i, 2, "3, and 4, once each in rotation, 
and repeat. 

The muscles of the loins, legs, back, and 
stomach are all strengthened by rising to 
and lowering from the sitting posture as 
directed. The arms, shoulders, etc., also, 



196 STRENGTH. 

are developed by the motions made whilst 
sitting. 

I have known many cases of obstinate dys- 
pepsia entirely cured by raising and lower- 
ing the body in this manner, either with 
or without dumb-bells. It strengthens the 
muscles of the stomach and bowels to a 
degree that is surprising to those who have 
not tested its efficacy. It is a particularly use- 
ful exercise for the obese, quickly reducing 
intestinal fat. 




LONG BAR DUMB-BELL EXERCISE NO. 1. 



CHAPTER VIII. 

HEAVY DUMB-BELL EXERCISES. 

The performance of these exercises is 
advised only for those who intend to fol- 
low the strong-man business, and for ama- 
teurs who wish to emulate professional ath- 
letes. To those with weak hearts, or who 
are not in every way lusty and strong, the 
lifting of heavy weights is highly detrimental, 
and these exercises must on no account be 
practiced by such. Business men and others 
leading sedentary or semi-sedentary lives 
can keep themselves in vigorous health and 
strength, and in trained muscular condition, 
by the use of the ring and the light dumb- 
bell exercises already advised. In any event, 
practice with heavy dumb-bells should not be 
begun until the light bells can be handled for 
half an hour at a time without fatigue. 

The dumb-bell I use when practicing these 

(199) 



200 STRENGTH. 

exercises weighs 75 pounds; that at my ordi- 
nary public performances 150 pounds. The 
heaviest I have ever been called upon to 
handle for record-breaking purposes scaled 
300 pounds. For the beginner, one of 50 
pounds is sufficiently heavy, the weight to 
be increased gradually, the same method of 
test being applied as directed for light dumb- 
bells. 




LONG BAR DUMB-BELL EXERCISE NO. 1. 



HEAVY DUMB-BELL EXERCISES. 203 



Exercise No. i. 

Stand erect; lieels about one foot apart, 
the feet forming nearly a right angle ; the 
dumb-bell lying between them, bisecting the 
angle, the bulbs facing front and rear ; the 
center of the shaft, which should be 6 
inches long and i inch in diameter, oppo- 
site the insteps (see illustration, page 139). 
Bend down by flexing the knees and hips, 
keeping the back unbent. Rest the left hand 
on the thigh, halfway to the knee, and grasp 
the dumb-bell with the right hand as near 
the rear bulb as possible (see illustration, 
page 145). Take a long, deep breath, and 
swing the diimb-bell up onto the right 
shoulder, assisted by the pressure of the left 
hand on the thigh ; whilst swinging up the 
bell straighten up the body. When the dumb- 
bell is resting on the shoulder (see illustration, 
page 151) move the hand grasping it to the 
center of the shaft, and drop the left arm 
loosely by the side. Draw a long, deep 



204 STRENGTH. 

breath ; bend the knees slightly (see illustra- 
tion, page 157), and then straighten them out, 
with more or less of a jerk, taking advantage 
of the upward impetus of the body to shoot 
up the dumb-bell to the extreme length of the 
right arm, keeping the eyes firmly fixed on 
the dumb-bell during the motion (see illustra- 
tion, page 163). 

This exeircise, though of course requiring 
considerable strength, is more or less of a 
knack, the art of fully taking advantage of the 
upward momentum of the body not being 
learned without considerable practice. This 
exercise should also be practiced with the left 
arm,, the right hand resting on the right thigh, 
whilst the dumb-bell is being swung onto the 
shoulder. 

If at first it be found that the dumb-bell 
can not be swung onto the shoulder with one 
arm, reinforce it by -placing the other hand 
under and around the one grasping the dumb- 
bell (see illustration, page 169) and swing it up 
with both arms. It will be found that a greater 
weight can be elevated from the shoulder by 




LONG BAR DUMB-BELL EXERCISE NO. 2. 



HEAVY DUMB-BELL EXERCISES. 207 

one arm than can be swung onto it by one 
arm. 

There is hardly a muscle in the body that is 
not called into play and developed by this 
exercise. 



208 STRENGTH, 



Exercise No. 2. 

The dumb-bell for this exercise may be 
somewhat heavier than for the last. Swing* 
the dumb-bell onto the shoulder with both 
hands, as directed in the previous exercise, 
and then move the hand to the center of 
the shaft. Shift the left foot six inches or so 
toward the left, turning its toe so that the heel 
points toward the instep of the right foot (see 
illustration, page 175). Grasp the left thigh 
just above the knee with the left hand, and 
throw the whole weight of the body onto that 
leg (see illustration, page 181). Take a long, 
deep breath and slowly elevate the dumb-bell ; 
at the same time gradually bend the left side 
of the body downward and the left shoulder 
forward, giving way slightly with the left elbow 
and knee, and swing the right shoulder and side 
backward. This movement will bri^ nearly 
every muscle of the body " ito play, and will 
enable a much greater weight to be elevated 
than if the body had remained unmoved ; for 




LONG BAR DUMB-BELL EXERCISE NO. 2. 



HEAVY DUMB-BELL EXERCISES. 211 

if the position described be properly taken, the 
body will be directly under, and act as a sup- 
port to, the elevated arm as it is being raised 
(see illustration, page i8i), and all the muscular 
force possessed will be utilized. Keep the eye 
firmly fixed on the rising dumb-bell, and when 
the right arm is fully extended, straighten up 
the body, allow;ing the left arm to hang loosely 
by the side. 

It takes long practice and hard work to per- 
form this exercise with anything approaching 
perfection. It is well, therefore, to repeat it 
frequently with a light dumb-bell in the hand, 
thereby, without undue strain, acquiring the 
knack of properly swinging the body. This 
exercise should also be performed with the 
left arm. 



CHAPTER IX. 

LONG BAR HEAVY DUMB-BELL EXERCISES. 

The weight of the long bar dumb-bell for 
the beginner should be seventy-five pounds, 
to be gradually increased as expertness and 
muscular development indicate, until, eventu- 
ally, one as heavy as the performer himself 
can be used. The shaft should be five feet 
in length (including balls) and one and one- 
half inches in diameter, the exact center of 
it being marked in some way, so that it can 
be grasped in the proper place without diffi- 
culty. 



(212) 




LONG BAR DUMB-BELL EXERCISE NO. 3. 



LONG BAR DUMB-BELL EXERCISES. 215 



Exercise No. i. 

Stand with the body upright, as directed 
in Light Dumb-bell Exercise No. i, the heels 
separated about one foot, the feet being at 
such an angle that the toes are two feet 
apart, the insteps under the shaft of the 
bar-bell, the center of which should be exactly 
equidistant from each foot. Take a long, 
deep breath, flex the hips and knees, keep- 
ing the back nearly straight, bend down and 
grasp the shaft with both hands about nine 
inches each side of the central mark, the back 
of the hands facing outward. (See illustration, 
page 187.) Swing up the bar-bell, bringing it 
into position shown in illustration, page 193, 
back of hands facing inward, straightening 
out knees and hips whilst in the act of 
swinging it up. Take a long, deep breath, 
flex knees slightly (see illustration, page 197), 
and then straighten them out with a jerk, at 
the same time shooting up the arms and 
extending them to the utmost above the head, 



216 STRENGTH. 

keeping the eye fixed on the central mark. 
(See illustration, page 201.) The impetus given 
is the same as that described in Heavy Dumb- 
bell Exercise No, i, and requires a similar 
degree of practice before proficiency is reached. 
The muscles of arms, legs, chest, shoulders, 
and back are all used and benefited by this 
exercise. 




LONG BAR DUMB-BELL EXERCISE NO. 3. 



LONG BAR DUMB-BELL EXERCISES. 219 



Exercise No. 2. 

Bring bar-bell to position it was in imme- 
diately previous to elevation over the head ; 
advance the left foot a few inches, turning 
its toes outward, keeping the legs unbent. 
(See illustration, page 205.) Throw shoulders 
well back, hollowing the back ; take a slow, 
deep breath, and slowly press the bell upward 
over the head, without any jerk, to the fullest 
extent of the arms, keeping the eye on the 
central mark. (See illustration, page 209.) 

This exercise calls into play the same 
muscles that are used in the last exercise, 
but it is more difficult of performance and 
calls for a much greater degree of strength. 



220 STRENGTH. 



Exercise No. 3. 

Elevate the bar-bell over the head as 
directed in the last exercise, keeping feet 
and legs in the position there directed, the 
weight of the body chiefly resting on the 
heels. Bend the extended arms slightly back- 
ward, the head slightly forward ; take a slow, 
deep breath, and then gradually lower the bell 
behind the head (see illustration, page 2 1 5) until 
it eventually rests on the nape of the neck 
(see illustration, page 217); then again elevate 
it and bring it down in front of the chest. 

This is an exercise that causes considerable 
muscular strain and one very difficult of per- 
formance. It should be practiced first with a 
piece of gas-pipe or an iron bar, and never 
with the bell until Exercise No. 2 is easy of 
accomplishment. 

There is hardly a muscle of the body that 
is not more or less called into play by the 
motions of this exercise. 




ROMAN COLUMN, FIRST POSITION. 



CHAPTER X. 

THE ROMAN COLUMN. 

To REAP full advantage from the following- 
exercises, what is known as a Roman column 
is required, although much benefit may be 
derived from a simple substitute, as will be 
explained later. 

The column is more or less a ponderous 
apparatus, and it is not always convenient to 
spare the space necessary for its erection. 
This drawback, together with the fact that its 
use calls for very severe muscular exertion in 
adults, leads me to recommend it alone to those 
who are in training for professional or high- 
class amateur exhibitions, and for children, 
who, because of the lightness of their bodies 
compared with their strength, are enabled to 
perform the feats without undue exertion, and 
to whom they are immensely serviceable. In 
any event, the exercises should not be prac- 

(223) 



224 STRENGTH. 

ticed by adults until their muscles are well 
developed, and brought into vigorous working 
order, by the preceding course of training. 

The Roman column consists of a three-inch 
iron pipe, nine feet long, standing perpendicu- 
larly, firmly fixed in a socket in the floor, and 
braced by three guys of wire or other strong 
rope. At a point that can just be reached by 
the upstretched clenched fist, when kneeling 
at the base of the column, are two projections 
opposite each other, standing out at right 
angles (see letter B, illustration, page 231), and 
four inches above them two others similarly 
placed (see letter A, illustration, page 231). 
These projections are made of angles of flat 
iron, three-eighths of an inch in thickness, three 
inches wide, and fourteen inches long. The 
projection stands out six inches, the plate lying 
along the column being eight inches in length, 
with three holes in it two inches apart, through 
which to screw it to the column. The two 
upper projections are padded on the under 
side, fully an inch in thickness; so that the 
space between the upper and the lower pro- 



THE ROMAN COLUMN. 225 

jections is reduced to three inches. The surface 
of the projections slope at an angle of about 
thirty degrees toward that side of the column 
which will be next the performer. This slope, 
as will be seen later on, is necessary to prevent 
straining of the ankles. A few extra screw-holes 
in the column enable the plates to be slipped 
up or down if the position of the projections be 
found to be too high or too low. On the left 
side of the column, one-third of the way up to 
these projections, is a step (see letter D, illus- 
tration, page 231), and two-thirds of the way up 
another on the right side (see letter C, illus- 
tration, page 231), Round, half-inch iron 
passed through the column answers for these 
steps. Two steel chains, with a snap-hook at 
their lower ends, hang from a collar set around 
the upper point of the column, and are of such 
length as to touch the upper projections. The 
collar, chains, and hooks should all be of the 
best possible material, for their breakage whilst 
in use might lead to very serious results. 
There are also required a couple of straps about 
two inches wide and softly padded, of such 

15 



226 STRENGTH. 

length as to buckle tightly around the leg 
immediately below the knee. To each of these 
a strong steel ring is attached. The leather, 
buckle, and ring should all be of the very best 
material, and so made that, when worn, the 
buckles will be on the outside of the legs and 
the rings in front. 

Having set up the column, and being fully 
assured that it is firmly set and securely guyed, 
buckle on the straps immediately below the 
knee. Grasp the upper left projection with 
the left hand; place the left foot on the left 
step and raise yourself to its level. Follow 
similarly with the right foot on the other step, 
the right hand grasping the right chain. Next 
place the left foot as far as the instep between 
the two left projections, and grasp the left chain 
with the left hand; with the right hand, hook 
the snap of the left chain to the ring of the left 
leg strap. Proceed similarly with the right 
foot, strap, and chain. Holding a chain in each 
hand, gradually lower the body back until the 
sitting position is reached (see illustration, page 
221); then release the hands from the chain, and 




ROMAN COLUMN, SECOND POSITION. 



THE ROMAN COLUMN. 

straighten out the body to the attitude shown 
in illustration, page 227, and continue to lower 
it until the body hangs straight down from 
the knees, as shown in illustration, page 231. 
After a few seconds' pause, by degrees bring 
the body back to the straight, and then the 
sitting posture, the arms throughout being kept 
close to the sides. 

At first few people are able to go through 
this exercise without aid. The hand of an 
assistant, placed between the shoulders of the 
pupil, giving slight support during both the 
lowering and return, will enable the perform- 
ance of the movements. 

The muscles of the back, stomach, and legs 
will be greatly developed by this exercise, but 
it must not be forgotten that the liability 
to strain is considerable, unless the performer 
is in a thoroughly trained condition, for the 
muscular exertion called for in a full-grown 
man is extreme. The exertion for children 
is proportionately far less, and I know of 
no exercise that so thoroughly and evenly 
develops the young. 



230 STRENGTH. 

After a time, when the movements can be 
performed with ease, the pupil should practice 
picking up dumb-bells from the floor whilst 
hanging from the knees, bringing them to the 
first position as described in Light Dumb-bell 
Exercise No. i, and then raising the body as 
directed above. After a time the heavy long 
bar dumb-bell can be lifted up and placed across 
the knees, and then a second descent be made 
and a pair of heavy dumb-bells be lifted up 
also. 

If space for the erection of a column is not 
available, fasten the chains to the wall, nine 
feet from the ground, attaching also projections 
and steps at the right heights ; or, if this is not 
convenient, a strong chair will fairly well take 
the place of the column if prepared in the fol- 
lowing manner : Attach the chair securely to 
the ground ; across the seat, from side to side, 
fasten a strong strap sufliciently loose to permit 
the feet to pass under as far as the instep, the 
center of the strap being nailed down so as to 
leave a loop, for each foot. Pad the top of the 
chair back. The back of the chair, from the 




ROMAN COLUMN, THIRD POSITION. 



THE ROMAN COLUMN. 233 

seat to the top, rtmst measure the same as from 
the ankle to the knee of the pupil. It is used 
in the following manner : Stand on the chair, 
the calves against its back ; place the feet, as 
far as the instep, under the strap loops and let 
the body slowly back, the padded top of the 
chair-back acting as the leg straps do, when 
the Roman column is used. The motions 
can then be gone through as already directed. 
None of these exercises should at first be per- 
formed without some one near at hand, so that 
should the performer's strength fail, assist- 
ance would be at hand to release him from 
apparatus. 



CHAPTER XI. 

HEAVY-WEIGHT HARNESS-LIFTING. 

This exercise is only for those intending 
to publicly exhibit their strength. 







I have not been able to improve upon the 
collar I used when breaking the record for 
lifting heavy weights in London, in the year 



(234) 




BREAKING THE HARNESS-LIFTING RECORD. 



HEAVY-WEIGHT HARNESS-LIFTING. 237 

1 89 1. It is the form, therefore, that I now 
advise, and consists of a four-sided piece of 
very strong flexible leather, about two feet 
across each way, of the shape shown in cut on 
page 234. A strong steel ring is attached 
to each corner, the hole in the center being 
of such size that the head can freely pass 
through, and the neck not be chafed when it 
is worn. The whole collar is softly padded 
on the inside. 

The performer stands on a platform im- 
mediately above the weight to be lifted. A 
railing on each side, which the performer 
grasps with his hands, enables him to use 
the muscles of his arms. The chains should 
be of such length, that, when the knees are 
flexed sufficiently to lower the body six inches, 
they will be taut when fastened to the weight. 

In illustration, page 235, 1 am shown raising 
two horses and two men, the chains from the 
collar being attached to the four corners of a 
movable platform, on which the horses and 
men are placed. 

Success in lifting heavy weights depends 



338 STRENGTH. 

Upon the art of bringing the greatest possible 
number of muscles into play at the same time. 
How to do this can only be learned through 
experience, gained by constant and intelligent 
practice. It is obvious that if the muscles of 
the back alone are used, as is the case when 
some object is lifted by merely straightening 
the curved spine, that as great a weight can 
not be raised as if other muscles also were 
called into service. Likewise, when the mus- 
cles of the legs alone are used, and the lift 
is performed by merely straightening out the 
bent knees and hips, the full powers are not 
utilized. The muscles of the back, legs, and 
arms must all be called into action and act 
in unison. To attain this end, when harness- 
lifting, very slightly round the spine, and as 
slightly flex the knees, hips, and elbows ; grasp 
the railings at each side with the hands, the 
heels being placed about eighteen inches 
apart, the feet at a comfortable angle. After 
drawing a long, deep breath, and with a fixed 
determination to succeed, the mind being in- 
tensely concentrated, straight'en out legs, arms. 



HEAVY-WEIGHT HARNESS-LIFTING. 239 

back, and liips gradually and absolutely simul- 
taneously, thus elevating the body and rais- 
ing the weight. It is a simple matter to 
thus instruct, and the simultaneous use of 
many muscles may appear a task easy of 
performance, but it will be found that long 
and earnest practice is required before it can 
be fully accomplished — development of will- 
power being no less necessary than develop- 
ment of muscle. 

As before stated, I broke all harness-lifting 
records by raising 3,800 pounds in this manner ; 
and later surpassed myself, and won the gold 
champion belt of the world, by raising 4,008 
pounds. A reproduction of the certificate I 
received for the latter feat is shown on page 10. 

It has been stated that a greater weight 
than this has been lifted by others, but their 
claims entirely lack confirmation, and my 
challenge to the world to compete with me 
in harness-lifting still remains open for accept- 
ance by anyone. 

This is an exercise fraught with much dan- 
ger to all those who are not absolutely sound 



240 STRENGTH. 

in every organ, and in a state of perfect mus- 
cular training. At first, tlie weight practiced 
witli should not exceed 500 pounds, a load 
that can be increased gradually as time goes on. 



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